27 November,2025 09:01 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
The ex-official demanded Rs 12 crore from a businessman to settle a matter pending with the Enforcement Directorate. Representational pic
A Mumbai court on Thursday sentenced a former assistant commissioner of goods and services tax (GST), Ashok Nayak, to five years in jail in a bribery case, stating that his "act does not deserve any leniency", news agency PTI reported.
The special judge for anti-corruption bureau (ACB) cases, AV Kharkar, found Nayak guilty under the Prevention of Corruption (PC) Act and for criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 1 lakh on him.
The case dates back to May 2017 when Nayak, then assistant commissioner, Central Excise, was accused by a businessman running a bar and restaurant in Mumbai.
According to the complaint, Nayak demanded Rs 12 crore to settle a matter pending with the Enforcement Directorate (ED), and asked for 25-30 per cent of the bribe to be paid immediately to avoid arrest, PTI reported.
The complaint further alleged that Nayak offered to use his influence with a "senior bureaucrat" in the Prime Minister's Office (PMO) to resolve the case.
The initial demand of Rs 12 crore was later reduced to Rs 10 crore, reported PTI.
ACB laid a trap and arrested Nayak while he accepted the first installment of Rs 1.25 crore.
The court said evidence proved beyond doubt that the accused demanded and accepted illegal gratification.
"As a public servant, he was expected to devote his sincere attention to duties and perform them honestly. His act does not deserve leniency," the court stated.
However, considering Nayak's age and cardiac ailment, the court awarded simple imprisonment instead of rigorous imprisonment.
National Medical Commission bribery case: ED raids 15 locations across Delhi, Maharashtra, and eight other states
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday conducted searches at 15 locations across Delhi and nine states, including Maharashtra, in connection with a bribery case involving government officials linked to the National Medical Commission (NMC) and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, ANI reported.
Apart from Delhi and Maharashtra, the raids, conducted under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), were carried out in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Rajasthan, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh. In Maharashtra, the searches included certain private medical colleges and residences of accused individuals.
The action follows a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) FIR dated June 30, which alleged that bribes were paid to NMC and other officials to gain access to confidential inspection-related information about medical colleges, ANI reported. The information was allegedly shared with intermediaries and college representatives to manipulate parameters and obtain approvals for academic courses.
The 16-page first information report (FIR) names 35 accused, including public officials from the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare and NMC, who are alleged to have conspired with intermediaries and representatives of private medical colleges.
According to the FIR, the accused allegedly facilitated unauthorised access to confidential files, disclosed inspection schedules, and revealed the identities of designated assessors to the institutions concerned, enabling manipulation of the statutory inspection process.
(With PTI and ANI inputs)
