Assam: CBI nabs CGST Joint Commissioner in Guwahati in bribery case
Guwahati: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday arrested Rahul Kumar, a Joint Commissioner of Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) in Assam.
Kumar, who was posted in Dibrugarh, was apprehended in Guwahati while on a special assignment.
The arrest is linked to a bribery case that originated in Mumbai. While posted there, Kumar allegedly accepted a bribe of Rs 60 lakh from a Chartered Accountant (CA) who had collected the money from a company.
This incident follows the earlier arrest of a CGST Superintendent, Sachin Gokulka, who was caught after abandoning his aide, a consultant who had accepted the bribe on his behalf.
The consultant, the CA, and three other GST superintendents were also arrested in connection with the case.
The accused officials initially demanded a bribe of Rs 80 lakh but eventually settled for Rs 60 lakh. Kumar is expected to be produced before a special CBI court in Guwahati.
The CBI's investigation revealed that the CGST officials had released a businessman after receiving the initial bribe amount, but demanded the remaining Rs 30 lakh later that day.
The businessman approached the CBI and, with their assistance, handed over Rs 20 lakh to the CA.
When the consultant, Abhishek Mehta, arrived to collect the money, he was arrested by the CBI. Mehta confessed to delivering the bribe directly to Gokulka.
The FIR in this case names two IRS officers, Additional Commissioner Deepak Kumar Sharma and Joint Commissioner Rahul Kumar, along with three other CGST superintendents.