GST Superintendent held for extorting from textile firm

A senior official of GST Surat and two more have been arrested for allegedly extorting Rs. 12 lakh from a textile trader.

Varachha police arrested Superintendent of GST Surat Rakesh Sharm, his driver and one more person.

There are reports quoting police that the trio went to a textile firm in Varachhaa run by Dhirendra Singh Rajpurohit and threatened him that they have a warrant against him for tax evasion.

The accused checked documents regarding fabrics. The mobile phone of the textile firm owner was taken by the trio and also removed the CCTV cameras fixed inside the firm premises.

As per police, GST Superintendent told Dhirendra Singh that he has to pay 12 per cent tax on the total sales, which is around Rs. 80 lakh.  The textile trader bargained with officials to get the matter settled. The three accused agreed on Rs. 45 lakh as a settlement amount. The trader paid them Rs. 12 lakh and ensured that he would pay the remaining amount soon.

When the incident came into the knowledge of a chartered accountant, he crossed verified with the GST office and found that no such team has raided the firm.

On the complaint of Dhirendra, Varachha police arrested the three persons and booked them under various sections of IPC.