In a first of its kind incident, a senior officer of the Research and Analysis Wing was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation for allegedly taking a bribe of Rs one lakh from a Chennai-based manufacturer.

Dr A S Narayan Rao, working as a scientist in the technical division of RAW, was arrested by the CBI from a hotel in Karol Bagh on Monday night, when he was allegedly taking the amount from the manufacturer, CBI sources said.

Rao had allegedly demanded Rs eight lakh as a bribe for clearing the export licence of the Chennai-based firm. Rs one lakh was the first installment of the bribe amount.

This is possibly the first time that a serving officer of RAW --an organisation responsible for gathering external intelligence -- has been arrested by the CBI, sources claimed, adding that searches were conducted and documents pertaining to the Chennai-based company seized.