I-T official,CA held for graft

An Income Tax officer and a chartered accountant (CA) were arrested on Wednesday by the Central Bureau of Investigation

An Income Tax officer and a chartered accountant (CA) were arrested on Wednesday by the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Mumbai for demanding and accepting a bribe.

The officer,Ranjan Prakash,and the CA,Vimal Patangia,were nabbed when the latter was accepting the bribe on behalf of the I-T officer. Officers also found Rs 24. 39 lakh from the CA’s office and residence.

CBI-ACB officers said they received a complaint that a person had been asked to pay a bribe of Rs 1.5 lakh to Prakash and that he had to route it through Patangia to get a favourable order regarding a file that was pending with the I-T officer.

The complainant was asked to pay the bribe through Patangia. He registered a complaint with us on October 11. A trap was laid and we nabbed Patangia red-handed. We also arrested Prakash as he was the one for whom the money was being asked,” said an officer.

The officer said the CA had reportedly told his other clients to bribe I-T officials to get settlements of pending assessments. The duo were booked under the relevant Sections of the Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Corruption Act and were produced in court. “The court has remanded the two in police custody until October 24. Further investigations are on,” said the officer.

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