A special court in Thane has acquitted a former railway pointsman in an 18-year-old bribery case, holding that the prosecution had failed to provide incriminating evidence against him, reported news agency PTI.

In his order of September 2, a copy of which was made available on Friday, Special CBI Judge D S Deshmukh dropped all charges against Shivaji Shripat Mashal.

According to the prosecution, the then station master of Kalyan station, Omprakash Tipanna Ninne, had demanded a monthly bribe of Rs 1,000 from a boot polish contractor. After being alerted by the contractor, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) laid a trap and caught Mashal allegedly accepting the money on Ninne's behalf on March 2, 2007, reported PTI.