CHENNAI: The Central Bureau of Investigation probing the gutka scam widened its net and conducted searches at the premises of Senthil Valavan, Additional Commissioner of Goods and Service Tax, and S Sridhar, former Additional Commissioner, System and Central Excise Intelligence, Directorate General of Central Excise Intelligence (DGCEI).
The searches come in the wake of the CBI effecting its sixth arrest in the gutka scam by zeroing in on E Sivakumar, who was then posted on deputation as Food Safety Officer in the Food Safety and Drug Administration Department, Ministry of Health earlier.
The other five arrested were promoters and directors of Jayem Group - AV Madhav Rao, Uma Shankar Gupta and P V Srinivasa Rao, designated officer of Thiruvallur Food Safety and Drug Administration department Dr P Senthil Murugan and Superintendent of Customs and Excise department N K Pandian.
Earlier, the CBI had raided 35 locations across Chennai, Thiruvallur, Tuticorin, Guntur (Andhra Pradesh), Mumbai and Bangalore, which included premises of Tamil Nadu Health Minister C Vijay Bhaskar, Tamil Nadu DGP TK Rajendran, former Chennai Police Commissioner S George, former state minister BV Ramana and several other top officials of the Central Excise department, Food Safety department and Health department.
The gutka scam came to light on July 8, 2017, when Income Tax sleuths raided offices and residences of Jayam Industries (now known as Annamalai Industries) which had been facing charges of tax evasion worth Rs 250 crore and seized a diary containing incriminating evidence linking top officials of the state. The case further gained prominence after the I-T sleuths, while inspecting the Poes Garden residence of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, stumbled upon letters exchanged between the Income Tax department and top bureaucrats of the State over the case in November 2017.
Banned tobacco products seized
The police seized around 50 kg banned tobacco products and gutka worth Rs 75,000, from Kancheepuram on Wednesday. Food safety officers raided the shops near Kancheepuram bus stand. The contraband was seized from a godown and the owner was arrested