CBI Books Four GST Officials for Bribery in Tamil Nadu

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed charges against four officials from the Central Goods and Services Tax (GST) department for allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs 5 lakh from a transport businessman based in Madurai.

The officials involved include Deputy Commissioner M. Saravanakumar, Superintendents Ashok and Rajbir Singh Rana, and Inspector Sameer from the Madurai CGST team. They have been booked under Section 61(2) of the BNS for criminal conspiracy and Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

In a complaint submitted to the anti-corruption branch of the Madurai CBI office on December 2, businessman V. Karthik detailed the harassment he faced. He stated that Ashok and Rajbir Singh Rana visited his home on October 24, alleging that a complaint had been lodged at the CGST Chennai office regarding his tax evasion amounting to Rs 2 crore.

Karthik complied with a summons and appeared before Saravanakumar on November 12, where he was reportedly informed that he would need to pay Rs 1.5 crore as a penalty or Rs 20 lakh as a bribe to regularize his GST account.

On November 25, Karthik returned to meet the GST officials with his auditor but was met with demands for Rs 10 lakh. The officials later reduced their demand to Rs 5 lakh. Faced with increasing pressure to pay this amount, Karthik decided to file a complaint with the CBI.

A preliminary inquiry by CBI officers substantiated the allegations, as Karthik had recorded a telephonic conversation with Ashok Kumar that was used as evidence. Subsequently, the CBI sought consent from the state home secretary, leading to the registration of a case against all four officials. The investigation is currently underway.