Central Excise Registration Certificate costs Rs. 15,000 for applicant and jail for Supdt.
A Bidi manufacturer (they are the most downtrodden among Excise assessees) was asked to pay a bribe of Rs. 15,000 for issue of a Central Excise Registration - officially there is no fee for registration.
Bidi is smoked by the poorest people and is made by poorer people and this Central Excise Superintendent wanted a hefty bribe from these poor people. The Superintendent gets about a lakh of rupees a month - the Bidiwala might not have seen a lakh of rupees ever in his life.
The Superintendent, his Inspector and a conduit were trapped by the CBI and arrested. The Central Excise Officers will spend some time in jail, where a bidi will be too expensive for them! Your career, your social and family life - all blown up - in Bidi smoke.