ACB arrests two forest officials for taking ₹3.5 lakh bribe in Bhadradri Kothagudem
Bhadrachalam Forest Divisional Officer Santhapuri Sujatha and Tegada Deputy Range Officer Bhukya Krishna along with the seized amount. Two Forest Department officials were arrested by the Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Thursday while accepting a bribe of ₹3.5 lakh in Bhadradri Kothagudem district. The accused were identified as Santhapuri Sujatha, Forest Divisional Officer (FDO), Bhadrachalam, and Bhukya Krishna, Deputy Range Officer of Tegada and in-charge Forest Range Officer of Charla. According to the ACB, the duo was trapped at the Forest Divisional Office in Bhadrachalam after demanding and accepting the amount from a complainant. The ACB said the officials sought money in exchange for not registering cases against the complainant over alleged damage to forest trees during the laying of a two-kilometre BT road from Pusuguppa village in Charla mandal to the Chhattisgarh border. The road work was completed in 2025. The officials were also accused of assuring the complainant that they would not interfere in his present and future works. Investigators said the accused initially demanded ₹10 lakh but later reduced the amount to …
