In a major operation, the CBI has arrested Mumbai-based Commissioner of Income-Tax BB Rajendra Prasad, Managing Director of Essar Group of Companies Pradip Mittal and four others in an alleged bribery case and recovered from Rs1.5 crore from a middleman.
Acting on a tip-off, the CBI laid a trap and caught red-handed Prasad who had allegedly received a part of the bribe amount of Rs19.34 lakh from a real estate agent based in Mumbai identified as Vishakapatnam-based real estate agent Suresh Kumar Jain. Both Prasad and Jain were arrested subsequently.
During the investigation, the CBI officials recovered another Rs1.50 crore that had earlier been received by Jain allegedly on behalf of Prasad was also recovered. Four others were arrested in connection with the alleged bribery case.
The four others arrested were identified as Mittal, Managing Director of Essar Group of Companies, Vipin Bajpai, Accounts Officer in Essar Group, Shreyas Parikh, Chartered Accountant for M/s GK Choksi and Mumbai-based Manish Jain, who is a relative of middle man Suresh Jain.
While Prasad and Suresh Jain were arrested from Visakhapatnam,four others, including Mittal, were arrested from Mumbai.
The case against Prasad, an IRS Officer of 1992 batch who works as a Commissioner of Income Tax(Appeals-30), Mumbai, is that he had recently passed an order in an appeal matter favouring a private Trust whose trustee is a private company based in Mumbai.
For giving this favourable order, Prasad allegedly demanded a bribe amount of Rs2 crore and wanted the money to be delivered to the relative of Jain who in turn after collecting the money transferred it to Visakhapatnam-based real estate agent Suresh Jain. Prasad had visited Visakhapatnam on leave and allegedly demanded the Real Estate Trade Agent to deliver part of the money at his residence in Visakhapatnam.
Searches were conducted in Mumbai and Visakhapatnam including offices and residence of accused which led to recovery of several property documents, details of Bank accounts, three lockers and several incriminating documents.
The arrested persons, including the Income-Tax Commissioner, Mumbai, were on Wednesday produced before a designated Court which remanded in the CBI’s custody till May 8. The four persons who were arrested in Mumbai were taken to Vishkapatnam on a transit remand for further investigations.