Arrested ATS officer’s men will be grilled

The Anti-Corruption Bureau will record the statements of officers and constables who worked with Arun Khanvilkar, the ATS officer caught taking bribe from a club owner.

“A few policemen in the Kalachowkie Unit of ATS knew that Khanvilkar was attempting to frame the complainant in a fake gambling case,” an ACB officer said. “We will record the statements of these policemen because they knew of Khanvilkar’s activities. He had even called the complainant to the ATS office.”

The officer, however, said it was unlikely that there would be more arrests because the club owner had specifically complained against Khanvilkar. He initially demanded Rs10lakh as bribe. “He took Rs5 lakh a month ago,” the officer said. “But he kept asking for the remaining Rs5 lakh. After a series of talks, he settle for Rs2.5 lakh.”

The owner, however, lodged a complaint with the ACB and it was decided that he would give the money to Khanvilkar on February 5. He was caught taking Rs2.5lakh at Samta Nagar in Kandivali. Two others were arrested along with him for helping him in the crime.
“We are still to recover the Rs5lakh Khanvilkar took,” Niket Kaushik, additional commissioner, ACB, said. “We conducted few searches, but the money could not be found.” The ACB will give a report to the ATS. “Officers who spend more than 48 hours in a lock-up are suspended. So, Khanvilkar will be suspended.”

Another officer said the name of a bookie-turned-builder had come up during investigations. “We are still to gather enough evidence before taking any action,” he said. The officer said this was not the first time that Khanvilkar had come under the ACB’s scanner. In 2003, a case was registered against him for demanding bribe. But he was not arrested for want of evidence.