ACB nets stamp vendor couple for excess charges in Navsari

Surat: The Navsari Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) conducted a decoy operation on Saturday after receiving information that buyers at a Common Service Centre (CSC) were being overcharged for stamp papers beyond the legal rate. During the operation, a licensed stamp vendor and his wife were caught red-handed.

The accused allegedly collected Rs 90 in excess from a decoy customer, and during a subsequent search, Rs 50 was also recovered from them.

ACB officials arrested Karishma Kanakante (34) and her husband Tukaram Kanakante (34), a licensed stamp vendor, for allegedly overcharging on stamp papers. Investigators also found that the wife was issuing stamp papers on behalf of her husband. The alleged irregularities were being carried out from a CSC at Chanakya Apartment, opposite the District Court in Navsari.

During the operation, the decoy customer purchased stamp papers required for preparing a power of attorney, an affidavit confirming the validity of the power of attorney, and a house rent agreement. The transaction included stamp papers of Rs 50, Rs 300, and Rs 700, with a total face value of Rs 1,050. However, the customer was charged Rs 1,140, resulting in an excess collection of ₹90 — including Rs 10 extra on the Rs 50 stamp, Rs 30 on the Rs 300 stamp, and Rs 50 on the Rs 700 stamp.

Officials said the decoy operation was carried out under the supervision of assistant director B M Patel, in-charge of the Surat ACB unit, and led by Police Inspector N B Solanki of the Navsari ACB.

A senior ACB official said, “A stamp vendor is entitled only to a fixed service fee, but the accused were demanding extra money per stamp. In addition, the woman was issuing stamps even though the licence is in her husband’s name.”

The accused will be booked for additional offences related to unauthorized issuance of stamp papers by an unlicensed person.