
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a case against two superintendents of the central Goods and Services Tax (GST) department, along with another official, for allegedly demanding a bribe of Rs 22 lakh from a bullion trader to settle a dispute.
The accused individuals have been identified as Satish Sharma and Ankur Godyan, both of whom are serving as superintendents of the central GST department, along with another officer. The CBI sources have clarified that although the demand for a bribe was confirmed, the accused did not accept any bribe. They are currently posted at the Air India building in Nariman Point.
The CBI initiated the case after receiving a handwritten complaint that alleged a demand for a bribe of Rs 22 lakh by the superintendents. The complainant, a bullion trader located in the Zaveri Bazar area of south Mumbai, claimed to have received a summons from the GST department, which led to a series of events where the officials demanded the bribe to settle the matter.
According to the complainant, he submitted all the necessary documents after visiting the anti-evasion office in South Mumbai. Subsequently, Godyan issued another summons to the complainant’s son. The complainant then visited the GST office and explained the situation to Ankur Godyan and Akhilesh, who demanded a bribe of Rs 22 lakh to settle the matter.
On March 15, the accused officials conducted a search at the trader’s office without providing any documents, which resulted in the complainant being detained at the GST office. The officials allegedly threatened the trader with a total tax liability of Rs 3 crore unless the bribe was paid. The accused officials allowed the complainant to leave after threatening him to make the bribe payment within 24 hours.
Following this ordeal, the complainant reported the issue to the CBI, which discreetly verified the allegations and registered a corruption case against the two superintendents and another GST official involved in the incident.