Ex-councillor 'asked for bribes'

Suresh Kumar lost his seat in the Valentine ward in 2006

An ex-Tory councillor asked two businessmen in London for £20,000 in bribes to help them with a property development, jurors heard.

Suresh Kumar, 44, even suggested half the money should be paid into his local party, Southwark Crown Court heard.

But his demands were secretly taped by an undercover reporter, it is alleged.

The former Redbridge councillor, from Newbury Park, east London, denies three counts of corruption between 11 November and 12 December 2004.

Two accuse him of "corruptly soliciting" £10,000 payments as a "reward for assisting in the passing and processing of a planning application", while the third mentions a fee but no amount.

Sean Larkin, prosecuting, told the court the development for 17 flats on the site of a derelict east London petrol station had been drawn up by Jasbir Bhogul and Rajwinder Rana, partners in Silverlake Properties Ltd.

Election campaign

Before the application was due to be considered, the defendant phoned Mr Bhogul, who had helped him with his election campaign the previous year, jurors heard.

The application was passed without any money changing hands.

Jurors heard that two weeks later the councillor contacted Mr Bhogul once more and again offered his help - for a price.

But this time the pair contacted a national newspaper, which told them to set up another meeting.

When questioned by police, the councillor insisted it was "a put up job by Mr Bhogul, supported by Mr Rana, to bring me down".

He was suspended from the local Conservative group in December 2004 after the allegations were published in a Sunday newspaper.

He ran as an independent but failed to win enough votes in 2006.

The trial continues.