Six transport department employees have been suspended after they were caught red-handed while allegedly taking bribe from truck drivers by Delhi's Transport Minister Gopal Rai during a surprise check.

The six employees were caught taking bribe on May 1 by Rai when he was carrying out the check near Azadpur flyover. Five of the officials involved in the case belong to the enforcement wing of the transport department while one is from the Delhi Transport Corporation (DTC), an official said on Tuesday. "Two assistant sub-inspectors - Vijay Kumar and Babu Ram along with head constables Pramod Kumar, Jaiveer and Jitendra Kumar were suspended on the charge of corruption. DTC employee Praveen was also working hand-in-gloves with them," he said.

The Delhi Transport Minister has also referred the case for initiating departmental proceedings against them and also ordered further investigation into the matter. "The government will take strict action against corruption and malpractices. We are taking appropriate measures to end corrupt practices prevalent in the day-to-day functioning of the transport department," Rai said.

Meanwhile, on Sunday while inspecting the DTC depot at Raj Ghat, Rai observed that only 100 buses had left the depot while 57 were still stationed inside. "On further investigation of records and duty registers, he found that 20 drivers who had been booked for duty had not showed up. They all have been suspended," the official said.