CBI files graft case against quarantine officials, seizes Rs 7L

CHENNAI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday registered a case of corruption against two joint directors of the central plant quarantine department, two officials of the department, a private firm executive and other unnamed individuals.
Officers of the CBI’s anti-corruption branch charged regional plant quarantine station (RPQS), Chennai, joint director P Manickam and directorate of plant protection, quarantine & storage joint director N Satyanarayana, both agencies of the Union agriculture ministry’s department of agriculture and cooperation, with receiving bribes for phytosanitary certification for exports of various herbs and release orders for imports of similar products.
They also booked two other agriculture department officials in the case — assistant plant protection officer and X-ray technician A Maharajan and assistant plant protection officer, Tuticorin, Ram Pratap.
The agency charged Rajkumar, an executive of ministry of agriculture-approved private firm National Fumigation, Tuticorin, with payment of bribes to government officials.
The officers have also charged others in the case but are yet to divulge their identities.
An investigating officer said the CBI, acting on a tip, investigated the case and uncovered a deep nexus between the plant quarantine officials and private individuals. The probe revealed that the officials demanded and accepted illegal gratification from customs house agents (CHAs) and private fumigators and shipping agents in Tuticorin.
CBI officers arrested Manickam and Satyanarayana at the Chennai airport after they arrived in the city on a flight from Tuticorin. They seized Rs 7.10 lakh in cash that the quarantine officials received in bribes.
“Searches are in progress in Chennai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Madurai and Tuticorin,” the investigating officer said.