Ahmedabad Chief Fire Officer arrested on bribery charges

CFO Amit Dongre (left) and Bhavsinh Pratap Jhala after their arrest on Friday. Express photoTHE GUJARAT Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Friday arrested Amit Dongre, Chief Fire Officer (CFO) of the Ahmedabad Fire and Emergency Services (AFES), and a private individual for allegedly demanding and receiving a bribe of Rs 36,000 in lieu of approving the Fire Safety Certificates (FSCs) of six buildings in the city. The ACB identified the other arrested person as Bhavsinh Pratap Jhala (31), from near Vijay Crossroads and claimed that Rs 36,000 paid to the duo as part of a bribe to approve FSCs for six buildings at Rs 6,000 per building has been recovered. Amitkumar Anandrao Dongre (47) CFO, Ahmedabad, Class-1, was arrested later on the basis of a phone call between him and Jhala talking purportedly about the bribe amount, said the ACB.A statement issued by the ACB said, “The complainant in this case works as a Fire Safety Officer (FSO), who provides fire safety related services, in Ahmedabad city. Through him, fire safety NOCs of a total of six buildings located in Ahmedabad city were sent for approval on the Gujarat government portal, but the accused (Jhala) demanded a bribe of Rs 6,000 per NOC, totaling Rs 36,000 for approval of all 6 NOCs.” The complainant then went to the ACB office in Vadodara and registered a complaint on the basis of which Inspector A N Prajapati of Vadodara ACB laid a trap along with government witnesses. The action was supervised by Vadodara ACB Assistant Director B M Patel. Jhala was caught red-handed by talking to the complainant about the alleged bribe and receiving the payment of Rs 36,000. The ACB statement said, “The accused, Amitkumar A Dongre, called Jhala and they agreed to the bribe amount. On the advice of Dongre, Jhala demanded the bribe and accepted it.” Legal proceedings were initiated against both of them. Further investigation is underway, police said.Story continues below this ad Amitkumar A Dongre was appointed CFO of the AFES on October 18, 2024, by the Staff Selection and Appointments Committee of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC). The post had been vacant and run on interim charge since the previous full-time CFO M F Dastoor, retired on January 31, 2021. Dongre took charge of the fire service of the biggest city in Gujarat on December 24, 2024.