Jalna (Maharashtra) | The Anti-Corruption Bureau has caught a 44-year-old woman GST officer and a private tax consultant while allegedly taking a bribe of Rs 60,000 to unblock a trader's Input Tax Credit (ITC) in Maharashtra's Jalna district, the ACB said.

The trader, who runs an electronics shop, had received a show-cause notice on June 6 after his Input Tax Credit was blocked. When he approached a tax consultant on July 17 regarding the issue, he allegedly informed him that a tax officer at the office of the Deputy Commissioner, State Goods and Service Tax (GST), was demanding Rs 1 lakh to unblock the ITC.

The 28-year-old tax consultant allegedly encouraged the businessman to settle the amount with the officer. Later, the amount was negotiated down to Rs 80,000, and a first payment of Rs 60,000 was agreed upon, according to the ACB.

Unwilling to pay the bribe, the businessman approached the ACB, which laid a trap on Tuesday and caught the tax officer while taking the bribe in her cabin, the anti-graft agency said.

The ACB later apprehended the tax officer and the consultant. Further legal action was being taken against the two accused, it added.