By Neeraj Kumar
Patna: Five individuals, including Principal Income Tax Commissioner Santosh Kumar, were arrested for allegedly accepting a bribe of ₹10 lakh. They were presented before the Special Judge of the CBI Court in Patna on Wednesday, where the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) requested their remand. After taking the accused into judicial custody, the court ordered their transfer to CBI custody for a five-day police remand to facilitate further interrogation.
The CBI produced Principal Income Tax Commissioner Santosh Kumar, Jharkhand coal trader Gurupal Singh, middlemen Dr. Pranay and Ashok Kumar Chaurasia, and Gurupal Singh’s representative Rajiv Kumar before Special Judge Avinash Kumar following their arrest. The court initially placed all five accused under judicial custody.
The CBI had submitted an application requesting a seven-day police remand for the custodial interrogation of the accused. After reviewing the application, the court granted a five-day remand, ordering the accused to be handed over to the CBI. They are scheduled to be presented in court again on Monday afternoon.
The case pertains to an alleged bribery incident. On 27th August 2024, the Delhi Crime Prevention Branch of the CBI apprehended Principal Commissioner Santosh Kumar and Rajiv Kumar in Patna while they were accepting a bribe of ₹10 lakh in exchange for providing tax relief to coal trader Gurupal Singh. Subsequently, the CBI also arrested coal trader Gurupal Singh, along with middlemen Dr. Pranay and Ashok Kumar Chaurasia, from Dhanbad in connection with the case.
