CBI gets a shock as six, including two senior IRS officers, are acquitted in SEEP corruption case

Mumbai: In a blow to the CBI, a special court on Wednesday released six persons, including two senior IRS officers, just hours after their arrest in a corruption case. The release came after defense lawyers argued that the arrests were illegal and the accused were being held in unlawful detention.

On Tuesday, the CBI arrested six persons, all of whom were posted at the SEEPZ SEZ in Mumbai, and brought them to court the next day. The accused include CPS Chauhan, Joint Development Commissioner (JDC); Varavantkar Prasad Hanumantrao, Deputy Development Commissioner (DDC); Manish Kumar, Assistant Development Commissioner (ADC); Ravindra Kumar, Assistant, SEEPZ-SEZ Office; Sanjeev Kumar Meena, Authorized Officer, SEEPZSEZ; and Rajesh Kumar, Upper Division Clerk, SEEPZ-SEZ.

CBI prosecutor demands custodial interrogation

During the court proceedings, the CBI prosecutor sought custodial interrogation, alleging that the officials were involved in “collusive corruption”, accepting bribes and providing undue benefits to parties active within SEEPZ. These crimes included rigging of space allocation, disposal of unused imported goods and sale of duty free goods without proper payment. Officials were also accused of favoritism toward civil contractors in exchange for monetary compensation. Further, the CBI claimed that during a surprise inspection, the accused met Manoj Joglekar, who allegedly acted as a middleman to collect bribes on behalf of SEEPZ officials.

CBI officials found 22 envelopes filled with cash, each linked to different companies or with coded references. There was a total of about Rs 500 in these envelopes. 60 lakhs. The agency also alleged that Chauhan had arranged for extension of his posting and during the search of the house, documents related to 27 properties were found, whose registration value was in crores. In addition, luxury cars, watches and bags were seized.

Defense lawyers objected to the arrest

Defense lawyers Rahul Aggarwal and Jasmine Purani objected to the arrest, saying senior officials have been detained illegally. He claimed that his phones were confiscated, his movements were restricted and he was kept in custody from 10 am on Tuesday till he is produced in court the next evening. The lawyers argued that this was illegal detention. After considering the defense arguments, the special CBI judge rejected the prosecution's request for custodial interrogation. The court ordered the release of all six officers on a personal bond of Rs. 15,000 each, detailed order will be made available later.