Jal Jeevan Mission scam: Nine govt officials arrested as ACB conducts multiple raids in Rajasthan

Posted on by Vividh Bharathi

Jaipur, Feb 17 (IANS) The Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the Rajasthan Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), on Tuesday, carried out early morning raids at multiple locations and arrested nine accused in connection with the alleged multi-crore corruption case related to the Jal Jeevan Mission, officials said.

The action was taken in a case registered by the ACB regarding large-scale irregularities in the implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission in Rajasthan, officials added.

Nearly six ACB teams conducted coordinated operations in Jaipur, Barmer, Udaipur, Karauli, Delhi, and other locations, leading to the arrest of nine individuals.

The arrested officials include Dinesh Goyal, Chief Engineer (Administration); K.D. Gupta, Chief Engineer (Rural); Subhanshu Dixit, then Rajasthan Water Supply and Sewerage Management Board Secretary and current Additional Secretary; Sushil Sharma, Chief Engineer of Jaipur Region-II; Niril Kumar, Financial Advisor (Renewable Energy); Vishal Saxena, Executive Engineer (currently suspended); Arun Srivastava, Additional Chief Engineer (retired); D.K. Gaud, then Chief Engineer and Technical Member (retired); and Mahendra Prakash Soni, then Superintending Engineer (retired).

During the investigation, it was revealed that M/s Shri Ganpati Tubewell Company (Proprietor: Shri Mahesh Mittal) and M/s Shri Shyam Tubewell Company (Proprietor: Shri Padmachand Jain) allegedly prepared forged completion certificates in the name of IRCON International Limited, officials said.

In alleged connivance with senior officials of the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED), tenders worth nearly Rs 960 crore were secured by submitting fake certificates.

The investigation also found that senior PHED officials violated tender norms by including site visit certificates in high-value projects (above Rs 50 crore), disclosing bidder identities, and manipulating tender processes.

These actions allegedly led to unusually high tender premiums, which were subsequently approved, causing losses amounting to thousands of crores of rupees, officials added.

For a swift and comprehensive probe, an SIT was constituted under the chairmanship of Rajasthan ACB’s Superintendent of Police, Pushpendra Singh Rathod.

The SIT team conducted an in-depth examination of technical and documentary evidence.

Earlier, the ACB had registered a case in connection with corruption in the Jal Jeevan Mission following a trap operation.

A charge sheet was filed before the competent court against 11 accused and two firms in the case.

The present arrests were made after detailed evidence analysis by the SIT under the supervision of Inspector General of Police Rajesh Singh and Deputy Inspector General of Police Rameshwar Singh.

Further questioning and legal proceedings are underway under the supervision of ACB Additional Director General Smita Srivastava.

–IANS

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Addressing the inauguration ceremony of a hospital in Ghaziabad, Rajnath Singh said, “We are moving towards the India our ancestors dreamed of: A strong and healthy India. Every step, every policy, every effort is dedicated to the poor, deprived, and rural people of the country.”

“We believe that India will be strong only when every citizen is healthy. We aim to establish India as a developed nation by 2047. To achieve this goal, the good health of the nation’s citizens is essential,” he said.

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ED hands over four Mumbai flats linked to Mehul Choksi case for monetisation

New Delhi, Nov 24 (IANS) In a significant step towards recovering assets linked to the multi-crore Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has handed over four residential flats in Mumbai—attached in the case involving fugitive businessman Mehul Choksi—to the liquidator for monetisation, the ED said on Monday.

The properties, located in Project Tatva, Urja – A Wing on Datthapada Road in Borivali (East), were officially transferred on November 21, enabling the liquidation process to move forward for the benefit of victim banks, secured creditors and other legitimate claimants.

According to the ED, this handover is part of its ongoing efforts to ensure restitution of assets in the massive bank fraud case.

With this latest transfer, immovable and movable properties worth approximately Rs 310 crore—spread across Mumbai, Kolkata and Surat—have so far been handed over to the liquidator of Gitanjali Gems Ltd., the flagship company of Choksi’s group.

“Till now, immovable/movable properties located at Mumbai, Kolkata and Surat collectively having a worth of Rs. 310 Crore (approx.) were handed over to the Liquidator of M/s Gitanjali Gems Ltd,” the ED said in its press note.

The money-laundering probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) revealed that Choksi, in collusion with associates and Punjab National Bank officials, fraudulently obtained Letters of Undertaking (LoUs) and Foreign Letters of Credit between 2014 and 2017.

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