Health ministry bureaucrat arrested for accepting Rs 1.5 lakh bribe

The CBI has arrested an Under Secretary in the Union Health Ministry for allegedly seeking a bribe for issuing Statement of Need to a medical professional, officials said Saturday.

The Statement of Need is issued by the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare to Indian doctors to enable them to pursue higher medical studies in the US.

The agency arrested Sonu Kumar, the accused Under Secretary, on the complaint of an Indian doctor who stays in the US. He had applied for a Statement of Need with the Health ministry.

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Kumar allegedly demanded Rs 1.5 lakh for giving the original hard copy of the Statement, they said.

"The complainant has enclosed the printout of the said certificate which was sent by said Under Secretary to his friend through email," CBI Spokesperson said.