Bribery Racket in CGST Jhansi: CBI Arrests IRS Officer, 2 Superintendents for Taking ₹70 Lakh Bribe
Moneylife Digital Team 31 December 2025
Central bureau of investigation (CBI) has arrested Prabha Bhandari, an officer from the Indian Revenue Service (IRS) cadre who was working as deputy commissioner of customs & indirect taxes along with Anil Tiwari and Ajay Kumar Sharma, both superintendents from the Central goods and services tax (CGST) department, advocate Naresh Kumar Gupta and Raju Mangtani, owner of Jai Durga Hardware, while uncovering a major bribery racket in Jhansi.  
 
The arrests were made following a trap operation conducted on 30 December 2025, after CBI registered a case alleging the demand of an undue advantage of ₹1.5 crore for extending favours to private companies facing GST evasion proceedings.
 
According to the agency, Ms Bhandari, an IRS officer of the 2016 batch posted as deputy commissioner at CGST Jhansi, allegedly orchestrated the bribe demand through his subordinates. Acting on specific inputs, CBI laid a trap and caught the two superintendents red-handed while accepting ₹70 lakh in cash on behalf of the deputy commissioner.
 
Following the trap, CBI arrested all five accused, including  Ms Bhandari, Mr Tiwari and Mr Sharma, the two superintendents, advocate Gupta, who was allegedly acting as an intermediary and Mr Mangtani, the owner of Jai Durga Hardware that was to benefit from the illegal favour.
 
Subsequent searches conducted at multiple locations led to the recovery of about ₹90 lakh in cash, apart from property-related documents and a substantial quantity of jewellery and bullion. With these seizures, the total cash recovered in the case so far stands at about ₹1.60 crore.
 
CBI says searches are still ongoing and further investigation is underway to identify additional beneficiaries, trace the money trail and examine the role of other public servants and private entities involved in the alleged corruption.
 
All the arrested accused are to be produced before the jurisdictional court following medical examination, as per procedure.
 
The case adds to growing concerns over corruption within indirect tax enforcement agencies, particularly in matters involving GST investigations and adjudication.
 
Comments
SKNL's ₹1,400 Crore Bank Fraud: Former CMD Nitin Kasliwal’s ₹150 Crore London Property Seized by ED
Moneylife Digital Team 31 December 2025
The directorate of enforcement (ED) has provisionally attached a high-value immovable property worth around ₹150 crore in London, located close to Buckingham Palace, in connection with its investigation into the alleged ₹1,400 crore...
₹2,883 Crore Chhattisgarh Liquor Scam: ED Names 81 Accused, Exposes Parallel Excise System Run by Bureaucrats, Politicians
Moneylife Digital Team 31 December 2025
The directorate of enforcement (ED) has laid bare what it describes as a deeply entrenched and meticulously organised corruption racket within Chhattisgarh’s excise administration, alleging that a criminal syndicate siphoned off...
ED Raids on UAE-based Fugitive's Money Laundering Network Links to IPO-bound Apollo Green Energy's as Accomplice
Moneylife Digital Team 29 December 2025
The Enforcement Directorate's Gurugram office executed extensive search operations across Delhi, Gurugram and Rohtak on 26-27 December, 2025, revealing a sophisticated money laundering network that has ensnared Apollo Green Energy...
I-T Benami Unit Attaches 282 Acres Near Hyderabad, Flags ₹2,002-crore Land Deal Linked to Former Sanghi Promoters
Moneylife Digital Team 29 December 2025
The income tax department’s benami prohibition unit (BPU), Hyderabad, has issued 17 provisional attachment orders covering a 282-acre land parcel located in Koheda and Omer Khan Daira villages of Abdullapurmet mandal, on the outskirts...
Free Helpline
Legal Credit
Feedback