Gujarat ACB arrests sub-registrar, three others in ₹2.5 lakh bribery case
Synopsis
A Gujarat ACB trap at Ahmedabad's Naroda-6 Sub-Registrar Office netted four accused — including the Sub-Registrar himself — after a property buyer refused to pay a ₹2.5 lakh bribe. The entire amount was seized on the spot, exposing an alleged nexus between a government officer and contractual staff who used QR codes and WhatsApp to collect illicit payments.
Key Takeaways
The Gujarat ACB arrested four individuals , including Sub-Registrar Aakash Desai , at the Naroda-6 Sub-Registrar Office in Ahmedabad on Tuesday .
The alleged bribe demand was ₹2.5 lakh for completing a residential property registration; an initial ₹35,000 was allegedly collected via a QR code .
Contractual staff Jay Adivasi and Rahil Sheikh , along with Narendra alias Sonu Ramkaran Bohra , are among the accused.
The full bribe amount of ₹2.5 lakh was recovered from the spot during the live trap operation.
This follows earlier ACB arrests in January (₹32,000 Aadhaar-related bribe) and March (₹80,000 police protection bribe in Gandhinagar).
The Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Tuesday arrested four individuals — including Sub-Registrar Aakash Desai and contractual staff of the Sub-Registrar Office at Naroda-6 in Ahmedabad — in connection with an alleged bribery scheme involving ₹2.5 lakh. The entire bribe amount was recovered from the spot during a live trap operation, officials said.
How the Alleged Bribery Scheme Unfolded
According to the ACB, the complainant had approached the Naroda-6 Sub-Registrar Office for registration of a residential property document. Sub-Registrar Aakash Desai allegedly raised initial objections, after which contractual employees allegedly stepped in to broker a resolution.
Jay Adivasi, a contractual stamp operator, and Rahil Sheikh, a contractual search operator, reportedly contacted the complainant and assured him that the documentation process would be completed. One of the accused subsequently reached out via WhatsApp, claiming the work could be processed without requiring a condition document under Section 73(AA) from the Collector's office.
The Money Trail: QR Codes and a ₹2.5 Lakh Demand
An initial payment of ₹35,000 was allegedly collected online through a QR code linked to an associate — purportedly for
Point of View
All involving citizen-facing government offices, all exploiting document-dependent processes where the complainant has no alternative but to comply or complain. The use of QR codes and WhatsApp to collect bribes signals that corruption has gone digital even as accountability has not. Gujarat's ACB deserves credit for the trap, but the harder question is why contractual staff — with no formal accountability framework — are operating as brokers inside government offices at all.
NationPress
12 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who was arrested by the Gujarat ACB in the Naroda-6 bribery case?
The Gujarat ACB arrested four individuals: Sub-Registrar Aakash Desai, contractual stamp operator Jay Adivasi, contractual search operator Rahil Sheikh, and Narendra alias Sonu Ramkaran Bohra. All were apprehended during a live trap operation at the Naroda-6 Sub-Registrar Office in Ahmedabad.
What was the bribe amount demanded in the Ahmedabad sub-registrar case?
The accused allegedly demanded ₹2.5 lakh for completing a residential property registration. An initial ₹35,000 was reportedly collected online via a QR code linked to an associate, purportedly for 'token unlocking' of the file.
How did the ACB catch the accused?
The complainant, unwilling to pay the bribe, approached the Gujarat ACB, which arranged a trap on the same day. During the operation, Jay Adivasi accepted the ₹2.5 lakh on the premises of the Sub-Registrar's office, and all four accused were apprehended on the spot with the cash seized.
What is the significance of the Section 73(AA) condition document mentioned in the case?
Section 73(AA) refers to a condition document required from the Collector's office during certain property registration processes. The accused allegedly offered to bypass this requirement as part of the bribe arrangement, suggesting the complainant was being charged to circumvent a standard regulatory step.
Is this the first such ACB action in Gujarat recently?
No. The Gujarat ACB had arrested three individuals in January 2025 for a ₹32,000 bribe linked to Aadhaar services in Ahmedabad, and a State Intelligence Bureau officer in March 2025 for a ₹80,000 bribe in Gandhinagar. The Naroda-6 case is the third significant ACB trap in Gujarat within five months.
