Mumbai Judge and Court Clerk Booked for Rs. 15 Lakh Bribe

A judge and a court clerk in Mumbai have been charged by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs. 15 lakh. They are accused of taking the money in exchange for giving a favourable court decision in a commercial land dispute.

Additional Judge Ejazuddin Salauddin Kazi of the Mazagaon Civil and Sessions Court and court clerk Chandrakant Hanmant Vasudev are involved in this bribery case. Before the present action of ACB, a trap operation was conducted where Vasudev was reportedly caught red-handed while accepting the bribe money; he then affirmed it through a phone call to the judge.

The current bribery case has been uncovered, followed by a chain of events that started on November 10, 2025, in which a complainant’s wife, who was involved in a long-standing property case, approached the ACB. The complainant reported to the bureau that the clerk Vasudev, was constantly demanding a bribe.

In conclusion to the complaint registered, the ACB conducted a verification exercise on the same day of complaint registration. During this exercise, the clerk repeated his demand and then agreed to accept a reduced amount of Rs. 15 lakh. The next day, November 11, the ACB set up a planned trap. Vasudev was reportedly caught taking the Rs. 15 lakh from the complainant.

According to the FIR, right after taking the money, Vasudev called Judge Kazi and told him he had “received the bribe”. The judge then allegedly said he agreed. The complainant’s legal problems began in 2015, when his wife approached the Bombay High Court claiming that her land had been taken over by force. The High Court issued a temporary order in April 2016. Later, in March 2024, the case was moved to the Mazagaon civil court as a commercial suit, which brought it under Judge Kazi’s authority.

As per the press note of ACB, the bribery attempts started on September 09, 2025, this year, when the complainant was met by Vasudev on September 12 at a Starbucks in Chembur. In the beginning, the accused asked for a bribery amount of Rs. 25 lakhs, 10 lakh for himself and Rs. 15 lakh for the judge. The complainant urged to reduce the bribe amount; however, Vasudev continued to manipulate him to give the same amount for weeks. This led the complainant to finally report the matter to the ACB.

Both the Judge and Vasudev have been charged under Sections 7 and 7A of the Prevention of Corruption Act.