A CBI court in Ahmedabad on Monday sentenced a Central Excise and Service Tax Inspector to five years of rigorous imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹63 lakh after convicting him in a disproportionate assets case.

The court convicted Kaushik Anvantrai Karelia, who was posted as an Appraiser and Preventive Officer at the Kandla Special Economic Zone during the check period and is presently working as an Inspector in Central Excise and Service Tax at Bhavnagar. The verdict was pronounced on December 29, 2025.

The court also sentenced his wife, Pooja Karelia, to one year of imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹50,000 for abetment in the offence. The court held that she had assisted in concealing assets acquired beyond the known sources of income. 

The Central Bureau of Investigation registered the case on September 30, 2013, after allegations surfaced that Karelia had amassed assets disproportionate to his known sources of income during the period from September 1, 2008, to March 31, 2013. Initial assessment pegged the disproportionate assets at ₹19.86 lakh, amounting to 130 per cent more than his known income.

During the investigation, the CBI revised the check period from April 1, 2004, to March 20, 2013, which revealed that the accused and his wife had accumulated assets worth ₹57.60 lakh. The amount was calculated to be 183.57 per cent in excess of their lawful income.

Following the completion of the investigation, the CBI filed a chargesheet on September 3, 2014, against Kaushik Karelia and his wife under provisions related to criminal misconduct and abetment.

After the trial, the court found both accused guilty and sentenced them accordingly.