The CBI has arrested three Customs intelligence officials posted at the Inland Container Depot (ICD) in Delhi’s Tughlakabad for allegedly demanding bribe to clear a consignment from Hong Kong.
They have been identified as Senior Intelligence Officers Surendra Singh and Ajeet Kumar and Intelligence Officer Sandeep Rathi. “During searches on their premises, the agency seized about ₹20 lakh in cash,” said an official.
The CBI received a complaint from the authorised representative of Haryana-based Adsun Electronics Private Limited alleging that the officials were demanding a bribe to clear a consignment of open cells. It had been withheld by the Special Intelligence and Investigative Branch (Import) of ICD Tughlakabad. Open cells are used in the manufacture of LCD/LED panels for televisions.
After the consignment was withheld, Mr. Singh issued a notice to the company on April 30 in this regard. The company representative went to his office twice for necessary paper work. During the third visit on May 7, Mr. Singh and the other two officials allegedly demanded ₹15 lakh from the complainant for clearing the consignment. They also sought ₹50,000 for all the containers cleared in the past four months, as alleged.
Mr. Rathi later called the company representative several times, asking him to pay up. Following negotiation, the amount was scaled down to ₹10 lakh and the accused officials agreed to receive ₹4 lakh as first instalment, according to the First Information Report.
After verifying the complaint, the agency registered the case and arrested the three accused.
