CBI Initiates Corruption Investigation Against CGST Inspector
Click to start listening
New Delhi, Dec 27 (NationPress) The CBI has initiated a corruption investigation against an inspector from the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST), who is accused of accepting bribes to permit the import of containers ordered by a businessman from Delhi without conducting any inspections, resulting in the accumulation of illegal assets exceeding Rs 38 lakh.
Deepak Sharma, an inspector with the CGST stationed in Uttar Pradesh, along with his wife Manju Devi, both of whom reside in Rohini, Northwest Delhi, have been identified as possessing assets worth Rs 38.87 lakh, which are disproportionate to his declared income.
Reports indicate that he also allegedly received Rs 2.32 lakh from a company as illicit payment in three separate bank transfers via NEFT, as stated by the CBI.
At least five import containers were granted entry without inspection by Sharma, arriving at the Inland Container Depot in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, between January 19, 2022, and July 13, 2022, according to the CBI.
The CBI FIR mentioned a complaint dated December 12, 2024, received from Rajesh Kumar Meena, Inspector of Police, CBI, New Delhi, who conducted a preliminary inquiry that indicated offenses related to criminal misconduct, which carries a minimum imprisonment of one year.
A preliminary complaint against Sharma was lodged with the CBI on January 31, 2024, under sections 7, 7A, 9, 10, and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act and other related penal provisions concerning conspiracy, based on credible source information indicating alleged criminal conspiracy and bribery of a public servant. This was then forwarded to Inspector Meena for further verification.
According to the complaint filed by the CBI in January, Sharma, who was working as an inspector at the Noida Customs Commissionerate, ICD, Dadri, Gautam Budh Nagar, UP, accepted valuable gifts and financial benefits from Harpreet Singh Talwar, also known as Kabir Talwar, in exchange for not inspecting the import containers associated with Talwar's firm.
Talwar oversees the daily operations of Talwar International, located at 6,608, Neem Wala Chowk, Factory Road, Nabi Karim, Delhi, and is a resident of East Patel Nagar. The company is directed by Baneet Singh Talwar.
The CBI noted in its FIR that Sharma had previously worked as a primary teacher with the Municipal Corporation of Delhi for four years, from 2010 to 2014, before his tenure with the CGST.
During the scrutiny period concerning his assets, Sharma's disproportionately high assets amounted to Rs 38.87 lakh, which is approximately 51 percent greater than his verified income sources.
The preliminary complaint by the CBI indicated that, “The majority of the assets have been acquired by the accused Deepak Sharma in the name of his wife Manju Devi.
