ACB arrests Chief Fire Officer Amit Dongre in Rs 36,000 bribery case

Ahmedabad News: Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) chief fire officer Amit Kumar Anandrao Dongre and his middleman Bhavsinh Zala have been caught red-handed by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) for accepting a bribe of Rs 36,000. The Class-1 officer, who was caught taking bribes within a probation period of one and a half years, has also been suspended after taking immediate action. This serious action has caused a huge stir among the municipal officials and corrupt employees.

Demand of ₹6,000 per building to approve fire NOC

The entire scam came to light when a complainant applied on the Gujarat government's portal for fire NOC approval for 6 different buildings in the city. In return for granting this NOC, an administrator named Bhavsinh Zala, on behalf of Chief Fire Officer Amit Dongre, demanded a bribe of Rs 36,000 for a total of 6 buildings at the rate of Rs 6,000 per building. Investigations have revealed that Bhav Singh was asked to meet him for any financial transaction related to fire safety

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ACB nabbed middleman and officer by setting up trap in Memnagar

The complainant lodged a complaint with the Vadodara City ACB regarding this demand of bribe. On the basis of the complaint, the ACB team set up a successful trap near Yes Aqua Complex near Vijay Crossroads in Memnagar. Bhavsinh Zala, a private person, was caught red-handed while accepting a bribe of Rs 36,000. As soon as the necessary evidence was found in the arrest and interrogation of the middleman, the ACB also detained Chief Fire Officer Amit Dongre and took legal action

For the first time in AMC's history, an outside appointment was made

It is pertinent to mention here that Amit Dongre was appointed as the Chief Fire Officer after clearing the Municipal Corporation Examination in October 2024. For the first time in the history of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation, a member of the internal staff of the fire department was directly appointed as the Chief Fire Officer from outside. At present, the ACB is conducting further investigations to ascertain the involvement of any other person or official in the entire scam.