ACB books PCMC chief engineer for allegedly seeking bribe to sign water supply contracts

Pune, October 29, 2026: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has registered a case against Pramod Sudhakar Obhase, chief engineer of the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC). He is accused of seeking a bribe from a contractor so that agreements for five water supply department works could be signed. The works are valued at Rs 91.57 lakh in total.

According to the complaint lodged with the ACB, the contractor had been awarded five tenders for maintenance and repair of the water supply network and for laying new pipelines. The works were together valued at Rs 91,57,068. Before receiving work orders, the contractor had to enter into agreements with the corporation. These required the signatures of both the superintending engineer and the chief engineer of the water supply department.

The complaint says the contractor prepared the agreements, got the necessary signatures from the firms' side and submitted the files to the PCMC for approval. The files nevertheless remained stuck.

The ACB document states that superintending engineer Ajay Suryawanshi allegedly asked the contractor for Rs 45,785 for signing the agreements. The amount is said to be 0.5 per cent of the total tender value. The contractor allegedly told him the matter could be discussed after the work was completed. According to the complaint, Suryawanshi then signed three of the five tender files and sent them to Obhase.

When the files remained stuck for a long time, the contractor met Obhase on May 29, 2026. According to the ACB, the chief engineer allegedly demanded Rs 45,785 at that meeting for signing the agreements. This amount, too, was 0.5 per cent of the total value of the five tenders.

The contractor filed a complaint with the ACB on June 11. In the verification carried out the same day, officials found that Obhase had allegedly demanded Rs 19,000. This is 0.5 per cent of the Rs 38 lakh value of the three tender files lying on his table. The ACB document also records that Obhase admitted to having taken a bribe from the contractor earlier.

On October 29, a case was registered against Obhase at the Sant Tukaram Nagar police station in Pimpri Chinchwad under Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The ACB said he was taken into custody at 3 pm for investigation.

The action was led by Deputy Superintendent of Police Neeta Misal. It was supervised by Deputy Superintendent of Police Satish Walke, with guidance from Shirish Sardeshpande, Superintendent of the Pune range. The Pune ACB team carried out the verification and subsequent action under the guidance of senior officers.

The ACB has appealed to the public to share any information on corruption and to complain against government employees who demand bribes. People can contact 020-26132802, 020-25122134, 9403781064 or the toll-free helpline 1064.