CBI nabs top foreign trade official in bribery case

Jawri Mal Bishnoi, a joint director general of foreign trade currently stationed in Rajkot, was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday for allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 5 lakh, officials said.

Bishnoi had allegedly demanded a total of Rs 9 lakh from a businessman seeking a no-objection certificate (NOC) to export food cans which would have allowed him to retrieve his bank guarantee of Rs 50 lakh, they said.

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The CBI spokesperson noted that the businessman had already submitted six files that contained all necessary documents concerning the periodic export of food cans to the directorate general of foreign trade (DGFT) in Rajkot, with the anticipation of receiving the NOC.

It was alleged that the accused demanded an amount of Rs 5 lakh towards the first instalment and instructed the complainant to deliver the remaining sum at the time of the NOC's issuance, the agency spokesperson said.

Officials said CBI teams moved in during the supposed exchange of bribe and caught Bishnoi red-handed.

The spokesperson stated that "searches were conducted at the office and residential premises of the accused, including those in Rajkot (in Gujarat) and his native place."