Customs Superintendent of Kolkata Port arrested for taking bribe of Rs 50K: CBI

KOLKATA/NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested a Superintendent of Customs, Kolkata for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 50,000 from the Complainant, the officials informed on Tuesday.

According to the CBI officials, a case was registered against Pawan Kumar, a Superintendent of Customs, Kolkata Port, Khidirpur, (West Bengal) on a complaint. It was alleged that the accused had initially demanded illegal gratification of Rs 3 lakh from the Complainant through a Customs House Agent (CHA) for releasing the consignment of the Complainant’s firm, which was imported from China.

It was further alleged that the accused reduced the bribe to Rs 1 lakh and finally agreed to accept the amount of Rs 5 lakh for releasing the consignment after meeting with Complainant.

It was also alleged that the penalty (detention charges) of the consignment had been accruing since January 2023 and this amount increased to Rs 3 lakh (Approx).

Later, CBI laid a trap and caught the accused red-handed while demanding and accepting illegal gratification of Rs 50,000 from the Complainant. Searches were conducted at two places, including West Bengal, Bihar at the premises of the accused.