CBI arrests NHIDCL officer, Kolkata aide in Rs 10L Assam highway bribery case
Both the NHIDCL official & co-accused were produced before the Court of Special Judge, CBI Cases, in Guwahati, on Wednesday
Investigators recovered unaccounted cash worth Rs 2.62 crore from the residence of accused Singh.
Guwahati, Oct 15: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested two individuals in connection with an alleged Rs 10 lakh bribery case linked to the issuance of a favourable completion certificate and extension of time for a highway project, officials said on Wednesday.
Those arrested have been identified as Maisnam Riten Kumar Singh, Executive Director and Regional Officer of the National Highways and Infrastructure Development Corporation Limited (NHIDCL), Guwahati, and Binod Kumar Jain, a representative of M/s Mohan Lal Jain, Kolkata.
Both the NHIDCL Executive Director and the co-accused were produced before the Court of Special Judge, CBI Cases, in Guwahati, on Wednesday.
According to a CBI statement, the arrests followed a trap laid on October 14 after the agency received intelligence inputs regarding the alleged bribe transaction.
Singh was allegedly caught red-handed while accepting Rs 10 lakh from a representative of a private company connected to the four-laning project of National Highway-37 between Demow and the end of Moran Bypass in Assam.
The private firm was reportedly involved in multiple NHIDCL projects across the state. Officials said the bribe was demanded to facilitate the issuance of a favourable extension of time (EOT) and the completion certificate for the project.
Following the arrests, CBI teams conducted searches at seven office and residential premises of the accused in multiple locations across India.
During the operation, investigators recovered unaccounted cash worth Rs 2.62 crore from the residence of accused Singh.
Preliminary investigations revealed that Singh and his family members owned nine landed properties and 20 apartments in different parts of the country.
The agency also recovered documents related to the purchase of several high-end vehicles registered in his name.
Verification of both movable and immovable assets is currently underway.
With inputs from Agencies