CBI Court Convicts and Sentences Two Postal Officials in Bribery Case Involving Recurring Deposit Accounts:

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Court, Lucknow, has convicted and sentenced two postal officials of the Sub Post Office, Kunda, Pratapgarh, in a bribery case. The action was taken on October 12, 2026.

The two accused have been identified as Suraj Prasad Mishra, Postal Assistant, and Santosh Kumar Saroj, Sub Postmaster. Suraj has been sentenced to three years’ imprisonment with a penalty of Rs 15,000; on the other hand, Santosh has been sentenced to six months with a penalty of Rs 5,000.

An instant case was registered by the CBI in the present matter on November 30, 2019. According to the complaint registered, the accused, Santosh Kumar Saroj, Sub Post Master, and Suraj Prasad Mishra, Postal Assistant, are alleged to have demanded a bribe from a commission agent.

"The accused officials demanded a fixed gratification at the rate of Rs.100 for every Rs. 20,000 deposited into Recurring Deposit accounts, labeling it as "Suvidha Kharch". The accused threatened to block the agent’s work and create hindrances if this money was not paid," according to a press release dated October 13, 2026.

Subsequently, the CBI planned a trap on November 30, 2019, to catch the accused, Suraj Prasad Mishra, red-handed while accepting the bribery amount of Rs 1,000 from the complainant to process a Rs 2,00,040 deposit.

After the completion of the probe, the CBI filed a chargesheet against the two accused on December 31, 2019. Thereafter, they were both convicted and sentenced by the Honourable High Court after the trial.