CHENNAI: The Joint Director (JD) of Regional Plant Quarantine Station, Chennai, P Manickam, and Joint Director, Directorate of Plant Protection Quarantine and Storage, Department of Agriculture, Ministry of Agriculture, New Delhi, Satyanarayana were on Wednesday remanded in judicial custody till May 10 for accepting bribes.
Judge G Vijayalakshmi, Special Court for CBI cases, remanded the two along with A Maharajan, assistant plant protection officer cum X Ray technician, to judicial custody after the CBI filed a case against them on Tuesday. The Anti-Corruption Branch of CBI had filed cases against the officials for demanding bribe from Customs House Agents, fumigators and shipping agents of Tuticorin for issuing Phytosanitary Certificates for exports and consignment Release Orders for imports.
The trio along with two others were intercepted at Chennai Airport while returning from Tuticorin with illegal gratification worth Rs 7.10 lakh. The other two officials are Rampratap, assistant plant protection officer, Tuticorin, and Rajkumar, National Fumigation, Tuticorin.
In 2012, the CBI arrested five officials of Plant Quarantine Organisation for taking bribes to clear import consignments.