CBI arrests superintendent of GST Council over graft charges

Superintendent of Goods and Services Tax (GST) Council Monish Malhotra and his close aide, Manas Patra, were arrested on criminal conspiracy and demand of illegal gratification charges by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday.

The case pertained to the period when Malhotra held the post as Superintendent range-36, Central Excise.

According to the FIR, Patra, a tax consultant, was in regular touch with Malhotra and many other officers of Central Excise and was working as a conduit for them for collecting of bribes on behalf of the public servants.

"Monish Malhotra while working as Superintendent, Range-36, and Central Excise had been indulging into corrupt practices of extending undue favours to private parties, businessmen by not taking action against them in lieu of periodical illegal gratification. Manas Patra had collected money on quarterly and monthly basis. The collected money is further delivered to Monish through cheques, NEFT or cash by routing it through various accounts," the FIR read.

The case was registered under section 120-B of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 7, 8 of the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act, 1988.