Additional Sessions Judge Aejazuddin Salauddin Kazi, posted at the Mazgaon Civil Court in Mumbai, Maharashtra, has been named as a wanted accused in a ₹15 lakh bribery case by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB). The investigating agency said the ASJ Kazi played “an active role” and had a “cordial relationship” with a court clerk, who was caught red-handed by the ACB last week while accepting a bribe on his behalf.
A special ACB court remanded the clerk-cum-typist, Chandrakant Vasudeo, to 14-day judicial custody on Monday (17th November). His bail application will be heard on 19th November. The ACB is reportedly seeking permission from the Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court to conduct an investigation into the judge, who is absconding.
The Court clerk told the litigant to pay a bribe for securing a favourable order
The series of events that led to ACB’s action against the judge started on 9th September, when a case relating to a long-standing property dispute came up for hearing before the judge. On that date, a colleague of the complainant attended the hearing. After the hearing, clerk-cum-typist, Chandrakant Vasudeo approached the complainant’s colleague in the court washroom and told him to “do something for Saheb (judge)” to get a favourable order.
The ACB laid a trap to nab the court clerk
Later, Vasudeo met the complainant in a cafe and demanded ₹25 lakh, ₹10 lakh for himself and ₹15 lakh for Kazi. After the complainant refused the demand, Vasudeo made a WhatsApp call to his colleague and told him that if the money was not paid, the order would be against them. After negotiations, the bribe amount came down to ₹15 lakh. On 10th November, Vasudeo asked the complainant to meet in a cafe in Chembur with the bribe money the next day. The complainant informed the ACB about the bribe demand, and a trap was laid to catch the culprits.
Court clerk said that he accepted the bribe on behalf of the judge
When Vasudeo came to accept the bribe amount at the set place, he was arrested by the ACB officials. He told the officials that he accepted the bribe on behalf of ASJ Aejazuddin Salauddin Kazi. On the direction of the ACB, Vasudeo called the ASJ Kazi on the phone in the presence of witnesses. Speaking to Vasudeo on the phone, ASJ Kazi consented to the bribe amount and asked Vasudeo to bring the money to his residence. During interrogation, Vasudeo said that he had been working as a clerk in the court for a year and had a “cordial relationship” with the judge. He further said that the judge helped him with his personal and family issues, which led to frequent WhatsApp conversations between them.
A team from the ACB went to the judge’s residence on 12th November, and found it locked. A house sealing panchnama was conducted in the presence of another judge and two witnesses. The ACB has seized significant evidence related to the case, including the bribe amount, call recordings, messages, video recordings and Vasudeo’s mobile phone. A case has been registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act, and the statements of the accused judge’s colleagues and lawyers were recorded.