The CBI on Saturday arrested four people, including a commissioner of service tax, in a bribery case, an official said.Commissioner G. Shree Harsh of the Haldia Commissionerate was arrested from his residence in Kolkata for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe for showing favour to Haldia Coast Cargo Logistics Pvt. Ltd., a private company engaged in stevedoring and offshore cargo handling at the Haldia Dock Complex.The Central Bureau of Investigation also arrested Sheikh Asgar Ali, a director of the company, Parvez Akhter, the person who delivered the bribe money, and J. Prasant Kumar, an aide of the tax official."The commissioner was arrested for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs.20 lakh from the directors of a private company engaged in stevedoring and offshore cargo handling in Haldia Dock Complex," a CBI officer said.
Probing the case, CBI sleuths also conducted searches in 13 locations in Kolkata, Haldia, Hyderabad and Guntur (Andhra Pradesh) leading to recovery of various incriminating documents."It has been alleged that the bribe payment was for showing favour by the accused public servant to the said company in the official matter of assessment of their unpaid service tax by conducting perfunctory inquiry/investigation with dishonest intent," the officer said.Cases have been registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code and Prevention of Corruption Act.All the accused were presented before a city court which sent them to five days CBI custody.