ITAT Judicial Member, Advocate Held as CBI Exposes Alleged Bribe-for-orders Network in Jaipur

Moneylife Digital Team 27 November 2025

Economy & Nation

In a major crackdown on suspected corruption within the Jaipur bench of income-tax appellate tribunal (ITAT), central bureau of investigation (CBI) has arrested a judicial member, a city-based lawyer and an appellant for their alleged involvement in a bribery syndicate operating to secure favourable orders in pending tax appeals.

In a release, CBI says it registered a case on 25 November 2025 against advocate Rajendra Sisodia, ITAT judicial member Dr S Seethalakshmi, an assistant registrar of the ITAT Jaipur bench and other unidentified public servants and private individuals. Investigators allege the group colluded to manipulate appellate outcomes in favour of select taxpayers in exchange for bribes routed through intermediaries and hawala channels.

According to the agency, the operation began on Tuesday when advocate Sisodia was arrested after he was allegedly caught receiving a bribe of Rs5.5 lakh from an appellant. The payment was reportedly arranged through a hawala network to influence a matter pending before the tribunal.

On Wednesday, CBI teams apprehended Dr Seethalakshmi and recovered Rs30 lakh from her official car. The appellant involved in the transaction, identified as Mujmmel, was also arrested the same day.

The arrests are followed by extensive searches across Jaipur, Kota and other locations. Multiple teams seized more than Rs1 crore in cash, along with transaction records, property papers and other documents that investigators say point to an organised network attempting to influence judicial outcomes within the tax appellate system.

Officials say the search operation is still in progress, with digital devices, financial trails and suspected links to other officials under scrutiny. CBI has not ruled out additional arrests.

This latest crackdown adds to longstanding concerns about integrity within ITAT, a body that plays a critical role in adjudicating tax disputes as the final fact-finding authority.

Nearly 17 years ago, CBI arrested an accountant member of the ITAT Kolkata bench for allegedly accepting Rs30 lakh from a chartered accountancy firm in exchange for favourable orders. That investigation uncovered evidence suggesting the firm had prior access to draft judgments and, in some cases, had even prepared them. The agency seized around 14 computer disks containing more than 70 pre-dated draft orders from various tribunal benches during the search.

Concerns resurfaced in 2012 when CBI launched a nationwide probe into more than 20 ITAT members across Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai for their alleged collusion with private intermediaries — including a prominent chartered accountancy firm — to secure advantageous rulings for clients.

The current case, investigators say, highlights the persistence of entrenched networks capable of influencing quasi-judicial decisions in revenue matters for monetary gain. The arrests of a serving judicial member and an advocate associated with the tribunal indicate an alleged system of coordination involving public servants and private actors.

An official from CBI, quoted in media reports, described the ongoing probe as “a significant operation aimed at dismantling a criminal network manipulating judicial processes for bribes.”

The agency says its teams are continuing searches and analysing seized documents, digital evidence and financial trails. Investigators are expected to question additional witnesses and examine whether similar bribe-for-order transactions were carried out in other appeals.

CBI’s release noted that follow-up action is 'still in progress' as the agency works to identify all beneficiaries and the full extent of the alleged network.

Comments