CBI sleuths raid residences of 6 customs officers, bank officer

CBI sleuths raid residences of 6 customs officers, bank officer
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

AHMEDABAD, JAN 6: Officials of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Gandhinagar, conducted simultaneous raids on the residences and properties of six customs officers and an officer of the State Bank of Saurashtra at 17 locations in Delhi, Mumbai and Gujarat on Thursday in connection with a case of alleged customs duty evasion by Essar Oil Limited in 1999.

The raids followed registration of a case of cheating and abuse of official position against the officers on Wednesday. The customs men and the bank officer had allegedly helped Essar in evading duty on equipment imported for their proposed refinery at Jamnagar, causing a loss of Rs 36 crore to the exchequer, CBI sources said.

The raids were conducted in New Delhi, Mumbai, Jamnagar, Bhvanagar, Rajkot, Valsad and some other places. Documents and property deeds showing assets disproportionate to the known sources of income of the officers were seized, CBI officers said.

The customs officers in question are Vijay Lakshmi Sharma, Customs Commissioner at Delhi; Mahesh Bhada, Customs Commissioner (Adjudication) at Mumbai; A C Sharma, Assistant Commissioner of Customs at Jamnagar; S P Choudhury, Superintendent of Customs at Jamnagar; S K Sharma, Assistant Commissioner of Customs at Rajkot; and K N Thakkar, Superintendent of Central Excise at Jamnagar.

Essar had imported equipment worth Rs 600 crore, which was kept in bonded warehouses at Vadinar in Jamnagar. The company issued a cheque for Rs 60 crore towards payment of duty and took out the equipment. However, the cheque was returned by the banker for want of funds.

According to the CBI, State Bank of Saurashtra Chief General Manager Goplani, whose house was raided at Bhavnagar, did not inform the customs about the bouncing of the cheque. As for the role of the customs officers, CBI sources said that, under rules, customs duty is payable by a pay order or demand draft. Yet, in this case, payment by cheque was accepted and goods released.

Later, the DRI arrested three senior Essar officers. Essar paid Rs 24 crore, but Rs 36 crore is still outstanding, CBI sources said. Essar officials were not available for comment.

CBI sources said Bhada, then Customs Commissioner at Rajkot, had played a key role in facilitating the alleged evasion, and they had found incriminating links between Bhada and Vijay Lakshmi Sharma. The raiding party had seized Rs 1.4 lakh in cash from Sharma's residence, while the search at a private guest house in Mumbai where Bhada had been staying had yielded documents of property worth more than Rs 25 lakh and fixed deposit receipts of Rs 9.5 lakh. ``We have also found documents which show that Bhada owns assets worth Rs 50 lakh as trustee of a temple'', a CBI source said.