The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered an alleged corruption case against a former Additional Commissioner of Income Tax, Santosh Karnani, his wife, one director of an Ahmedabad-based firm and others.
It is based on the findings of another case taken over by the agency in October last year from the Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau. In June, the CBI had filed a chargesheet against Mr. Karnani in that case. In the latest First Information Report (FIR), among those named are Mr. Karnani’s wife Arti and Ilesh Shah, a director of Shree Kanhai Realty Private Limited.
According to the CBI, during the probe in the 2022 case, it had sent Mr. Karnani’s two mobile phones seized from co-accused Vivek Johri (the then Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax) to the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (Delhi) for examination.
The retrieved mobile phone data revealed that Mr. Karnani had allegedly shared official information with private firms and individuals who were either directly or indirectly connected with him or with the business of family members.
The FIR has quoted WhatsApp chat exchanges between Mr. Karnani and Mr. Shah, purportedly indicating that he had extended favours and received alleged illegal gratification in the form of a 2,428 sq-metre plot in Ahmedabad. The property was registered in the name of his wife for a consideration of Rs. 40 lakh. However, as alleged, the property’s market value was about Rs. 3.50 crore, it alleged.
