The Central Railway’s principal chief mechanical engineer (PCME) has been arrested in a massive bribery case. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has recovered 23 lakh in cash, 40 lakh in jewellery, 13 crore in property details, and USD 2,00,000 (1,63,30,770) in three foreign bank accounts in Singapore and the United States.
According to the agency, some bills of the Kolkata-based firm, a railway contractor, were pending with the Central Railway’s mechanical engineering department and the PCME, and the head of the mechanical engineering department, Ashok Kumar Gupta, allegedly demanded a bribe of 1 lakh to clear the bills.
Acting on specific information, CBI registered an offence, and arrested the official driver of the PCME, Abdul Kalam Shaikh, for allegedly accepting the ₹1 lakh as a bribe on behalf of the PCME from the partner of the Kolkata-based firm. The partner, Aditya Tiberwal is also arrested in the case.
The agency, thereafter conducted searches at ten locations, including in Mumbai, Kolkata, Ghaziabad, Noida, Dehradun and Delhi, connected with the PCME and the firm.
During searches at Gupta’s premises, cash of around 23 lakh, and jewellery worth around ₹40 lakh have been recovered, said the agency in a statement released on Tuesday
CBI officials also discovered documents and details of around 8 crore in investments, land and houses in Delhi, Noida, Haridwar, and Dehradun worth over 5 crore, and three foreign bank accounts in Singapore and the United States with deposits totaling around USD 2,00,000, according to the statement.
Furthermore, the agency discovered information about an NRI bank account and other bank accounts in the names of the PCME and his family members. A bank locker has also been located.