Visakhapatnam: ACB seizes cash, documents

Visakhapatnam: The CBI officials on Saturday conducted searches at the office and Storage Department, Ministry of Agriculture, at Visakhapatnam, Roorkee and Kakinada and seized Rs.1.86 crore cash and documents.

The Anti-Corruption Wing of CBI, Vizag, arrested a plant protection officer and a representative of Exim Logistics Private Limited on Friday.

Plant protection officer at Plant Quarantine Station in Vizag R Padam Singh allegedly accepted a bribe of Rs.6,000 from A Bulli Reddiyya, regional manager of Exim Logistics Private Limited for clearing pending applications.

Based on reliable information, CBI conducted searches at the residential premises of the accused persons in three places and seized Rs.1.86 crore cash.

The accused persons R. Padam Singh, Athi Bulli Reddiyya, S Siva Rama Gupta and M Sri Krishna Varma were arrested for being allegedly involved in the case and produced before the court.

A case was registered against the Plant Protection Officer, Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine & Storage Department, Ministry of Agriculture (Govt of India), Visakhapatnam and a Regional Manager of a private company based at Visakhapatnam. It was alleged that the Plant Protection Officer, Visakhapatnam, Directorate of Plant Protection, Quarantine & Storage Department, Ministry of Agriculture (Govt of India) was demanding & collecting huge amounts of bribes from the CHAs, Fumigators and Shipping Agents for issuing Phytosanitary Certificates for exporting the goods and Consignment Release Orders for imported consignments