ACB Arrests Two CGST Officers for Accepting ₹2,000 Bribe from Nursery Owner
ACB arrests two CGST officers in Vapi for allegedly accepting a Rs. 2,000 bribe from a nursery owner to clear payment bills.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Tuesday arrested two officials from the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) office in Vapi for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs. 2,000 from a nursery owner. The arrested officers have been identified as Senior Accounts Officer Ravishanker Jha and Assistant Accounts Officer Kapil Jain.
According to The Indian Express, the complainant, who owns a nursery, had supplied potted plants worth Rs. 29,000 to the CGST office in Vapi a few months ago. After completing the order, he submitted the bill to the office and had been following up regularly to get his payment released. Despite several visits and reminders, the payment was not cleared.
During one of his recent visits, Assistant Accounts Officer Kapil Jain allegedly demanded Rs. 2,000 from the nursery owner to clear the pending bill. The demand was made in the presence of Senior Accounts Officer Ravishanker Jha.
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The complainant was unwilling to pay the bribe and decided to approach the Anti-Corruption Bureau. He lodged a formal complaint with the ACB’s Valsad unit, which then verified the details and planned a trap to catch the officers red-handed.
On Tuesday, ACB officials laid the trap at the CGST office in Vapi. The complainant went inside the office and handed over the marked money to the accused officers as instructed. Once the transaction took place, ACB officers who were waiting nearby in plain clothes entered the office and caught both officials on the spot. The bribe amount of Rs. 2,000 was recovered from them.
The officers were immediately taken to the ACB office in Valsad for questioning and further investigation. Both have been booked under relevant sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, which deals with public servants accepting illegal gratification.
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ACB Surat Assistant Director R. R. Chaudhary confirmed the arrests and said that both accused are being interrogated. He added that further investigation is underway to determine whether they have taken bribes in other cases as well.
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