CGST Officer arrested for taking Bribe of Rs.20000 From Accountant

An Indore Lokayukta team arrested a Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) officer for allegedly demanding a Rs 20,000 bribe on Friday. The officer, named GST superintendent Mukesh Tripathi, was accused of taking a bribe from an accountant with the promise of restoring the suspended registration of a medical firm and correcting two further firms’ registrations.

As per the complainant, Rahul Birla who is a resident of Sanawad in Khargone district, provides services of GST return and accounting. Birla alleged that Superintendent Tripathi suspended the registration of a medical firm under suspicious circumstances, that he represented.

The accused official demanded a bribe in order to restore the firm’s registration and make necessary changes to three firm registrations. Birla then reported the wrongdoing to Superintendent of Police Rajesh Sahay.

Following an investigation led by Lokayukta’s DSP Praveen Singh Baghel, the complaint was verified and found credible. On the day of the sting operation, Lokayukta’s officials caught Superintendent Tripathi while accepting the bribe in his office at the CGST Division in Khandwa.

This operation shows the Lokayukta’s continuous efforts to combat corruption in the public sector, with charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act thoroughly substantiated against the accused.

According to reports, the accused Superintendent Mukesh Tripathi (56) is from Uttar Pradesh. He has been posted in Khandwa since July 2023. His monthly income was approximately Rs.1.25 lakh.

Interestingly, Tripathi has established a residence in Khandwa till now. He also allegedly set fixed bribe rates for the various activities he handled.