Andhra Pradesh: Central GST official held while taking bribe

Amaravati: Sleuths of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) have trapped and arrested a superintendent of CGST, Amaravati division, in Vijayawada while allegedly accepting Rs 8,000 as illegal gratification from a goldsmith.

CBI superintendent of police P Vimaladitya informed in a release here on Saturday that CGST superintendent John Moses demanded Rs 10,000 from a goldsmith G Nageswara Rao of Mangalagiri, who sought to register his shop with the GST department. According to the SP, Nageswara Rao expressed inability to pay the bribe, following which the CGST superintendent became furious.

Moses asked Rao to visit his office and agreed to reduce the bribe amount to Rs 8,000, the release said.

Not willing to pay the illegal gratification, Rao approached the state Anti-Corruption Bureau officials, who re-directed him to the CBI due to jurisdictional issues.

CBI Inspector A K Dabas visited Vijayawada and verified the complaint and submitted a report to his SP in Visakhapatnam.

On Friday, a trap was laid and Moses was arrested while accepting a bribe of Rs 8,000, the CBI SP said.

Searches were conducted at the office and residential premises of the accused in Vijayawada, which led to recovery of certain documents, Vimaladitya said.

The arrested official was produced before the competent court and remanded to judicial custody, he added.