KOCHI: In yet another turn to the controversy over the import of photocopiers through the Kochi port, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has launched a probe to ascertain whether they had been imported through bogus agencies.
Official sources said the CBI Anti-Corruption Unit, Kochi, had launched a preliminary probe, and that a case would be registered only if the agency finds concrete evidence.
The CBI will ascertain the number of machines imported, besides garnering details of the agencies that facilitated the import.
The CBI has information that more than 25,000 multifunctional photocopiers, mainly from the US and Germany, had reached the country through the Kochi port over a period of three years. While the machines were imported in the name of several agencies, officials are examining whether it was a single firm that had carried out the entire operation by submitting false addresses.
Re-export
The CBI had written to the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB), seeking details of the import. Subsequently, the SPCB asked the Customs Department to ensure the immediate re-export of the impounded consignment.
Around six months ago, the Customs Department had ordered the Kolkata-based importers to re-export the 3,100 machines that had arrived at the Kochi port, besides imposing a redemption of ₹1.5 crore on them. Two weeks ago, a division bench of the Customs, Excise and Service Tax Appellate Tribunal (CESTAT) in Bengaluru had set aside the order.
The CBI will also collect information on the import from the photocopier manufacturing companies in the US and Germany.
