Amid GST Fraud Case, Journalist Mahesh Langa Booked For ‘Possession Of Confidential Documents’
Senior journalist Mahesh Langa was booked again on Tuesday by Gandhinagar Police in a case of alleged possession of confidential government documents. Langa was already in judicial custody in a case of alleged Goods and Services Tax (GST) evasion.
The journalist, who works with The Hindu in Ahmedabad, was booked on charges of possessing confidential documents related to the Gujarat Maritime Board (GBM), said Ravi Teja Vasamsetty, Gandhinagar Superintendent of Police (SP).
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According to the police, the documents were recovered from Langa’s possession during his arrest in the GST fraud case. The Gandhinagar SP has reportedly declined to comment on the section under which the journalist has been booked in the FIR.
The Gandhinagar police reached the office of the GBM and conducted searches and enquiries on Tuesday to find the source that had allegedly leaked the confidential documents to Langa.
SP Vasamsetty stated that Langa is the sole accused in the case currently. “We are attempting to find out how he received those documents,” he added, as quoted by The Indian Express.
The Gujarat correspondent of The Hindu was remanded to ten days in police custody for alleged involvement in a GST scam on October 8. Following the same, several journalism organisations issued a statement calling the ten-day remand “judicial overreach.”
Langa and three others were arrested after the Crime Branch, Economic Offences Wing, and Special Operations Group of the Gujarat Police raided 14 locations in the state on October 7.
Meanwhile, five others were arrested on Tuesday by the Ahmedabad Detection of Crime Branch in the GST scam. The five individuals have been identified as Adil Kadar Khokhar, Kadar alias Navdi Rafiqbhai Khokhar, Akil Anubhai Pathan, Shahrukh Rafiqbhai Rangrej, and Sarfaraz Mustufa Chauhan. A total of 13 people have been arrested in the case.
A total of 13 people have been arrested in the case so far.
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The journalist had moved the Gujarat High Court challenging his police remand, terming it “politically motivated.” However, he withdrew the petition during the plea hearing on October 14.
He was arrested after 13 companies and their proprietors were booked for an alleged input tax credit (ITC) fraud, based on a complaint filed by the Directorate General of GST Intelligence (DGGI). The case is currently under investigation by the Crime Branch.
According to the FIR, over 220 benami firms were set up on the basis of forged documents used in the racket. The police alleged that the GST scam caused a loss to the government exchequer, with the accused availing and passing on bogus ITC through fake bills.
Langa’s arrest has been criticised by many journalists on social media as he is known to be critical of the governments in Gujarat and the Centre.
