Senior home ministry official booked for fraud (Lead, superseding earlier story)
By IANSWednesday, April 28, 2010
NEW DELHI - A senior Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer and some excise officials have been booked for causing a loss of Rs.340 crore to the exchequer in connivance with other people, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said here Wednesday.
“A case of fraud and criminal conspiracy was registered Tuesday against O. Ravi, joint secretary (disaster management) in the ministry of home affairs, two excise inspectors - Ramesh Mahyavanshi and Vijay Halpati - and excise sub-inspector Suresh Dhodi,” CBI spokesman Harsh Bhal said.
They connived with some people in six Daman-based distilleries and others to cause a loss of Rs.340 crore to the Daman and Diu administration, Bhal added.
The CBI said searches were being conducted at 36 places linked to the accused in Daman, Mumbai and New Delhi. Offices of distilleries in Daman were also raided.
The distillers of Daman, in connivance with some officials of the excise department, resorted to under reporting of production by preparing fake documents.
They sold unauthorised, under-reported liquor bottles to the neighbouring states of Goa, Gujarat and Maharashtra to evade excise duties.
“One of the distillers was in regular touch with Ravi to utilise his services, for which he (the bureaucrat) was paid Rs.25 lakh,” he added.
