Four officials from the Goods and Services Tax (GST) department were arrested on Wednesday for allegedly assaulting and extorting ₹1.5 crore from a businessman in Bengaluru. The Central Crime Branch (CCB) identified the arrested individuals as Abhishek, Superintendent of Central Tax (South Commissionerate, Bengaluru Zone), Manoj Saini and Nagesh Babu, senior intelligence officers, and Sonali Sahay, intelligence officer of Bengaluru.
According to the CCB, all the accused are part of the Director General of GST Intelligence, Bengaluru zonal unit. The arrest follows a complaint by Keshav Tak, owner of Mexo Solutions Private Limited in Jeevan Bhimanagar, who alleged that the officials confined and extorted him between August 30 and September 1.
In his complaint, Tak stated that the accused posed as officials from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and GST, conducting a fake ‘raid’ on his residence. They then took him and his associates, Pavan Tak, Mukesh Jain, and Rakesh Chandani, to the office of Mexo Solutions, where they seized their mobile phones and assaulted them.
Tak further alleged, ‘We were kept in separate rooms and asked to pay money. I called my associate Rakesh Jain to arrange ₹3 crore. By September 1, he managed to gather ₹1.5 crore, and we were released to collect the money for the officials, who later left the documents in our office’
Upon checking the background of the officials, Tak discovered the raid was unauthorised, prompting him to file a police complaint. The Byappanahalli police investigation confirmed that the officials were indeed from GST but had conducted the raid illegally, holding the victims for two days.
The CCB produced the accused before a magistrate and secured their custody for 10 days. ‘We haven’t recovered the money yet but are reviewing suspicious transactions’ said a CCB officer, adding that 32 phones, two laptops, and 50 cheque books were seized from the suspects.
The arrest of four GST officials in Bengaluru for staging a fake raid and extorting ₹1.5 crore from a businessman represents a severe breach of trust and an abuse of authority. This incident underscores the critical need for transparency and accountability within regulatory agencies. The actions of these officials not only harm the reputation of the GST department but also disrupt the business environment by fostering fear and mistrust among entrepreneurs.
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