Rail board bribery: CBI may register more FIRs

To establish if allegations of money trail between rail minister and nephew are true

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is likely to register a few more First Information Reports (FIRs) in the ongoing railway board member bribery case. Since the current FIR is limited by its scope of investigating only the bribery allegation, CBI would have to register separate cases to probe the award of contracts to Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal’s nephew, Vijay Singla, as well as his associates.

The investigative agency has not ruled out the possibility of probing the appointments of other railway board members as well.

CBI has secured the custody of Ajay Garg, a close aide of Singla, a resident of Chandigarh and one of the accused in the case. Garg surrendered before a court today. To ascertain the details of the posting of Mahesh Kumar, member (staff), Railway Board, CBI has also taken the transfer and posting register from the railway ministry. It is likely CBI would question rail ministry officials soon.

So far, CBI has denied having gathered any evidence against Bansal. It is questioning the accused to establish whether allegations of a money trail between Kumar and Singla are true.

Based on the interrogation of the accused, CBI would decide whether any action could be taken against rail ministry officials.

Meanwhile, CBI sleuths today recovered jewellery, property papers and Kisan Vikas Patra documents belonging to Kumar from his Mumbai residence. Though raids were carried out at his house on May 3, CBI had suspected his staff had hidden some of his belongings.

So far, nine people have been arrested in the case. Those arrested include Mahesh Kumar, Vijay Singla, Ajay Garg, G G Tronics India managing director Narayan Rao Manjunath and close aides of Singla — Samir Sandhir, Rahul Yadav and Panchkula-based Sandeep Goyal. CBI has also secured 14 days of judicial custody of Vivek Kumar and Dharmendra Kumar, associates of Singla’s conduit Yadav.

On May 3, CBI had registered an FIR against eight people accused of criminal conspiracy and bribery. The agency alleged Kumar had agreed to receive Rs 2 crore as illegal gratification from Manjunath and other businessmen dealing with the railways. CBI said Kumar had paid this money as bribe to Singla’s associates, in exchange of a posting in the electrical department.

Through a trap a laid by it, CBI had caught a bribe of Rs 90 lakh being exchanged between Singla’s and Kumar’s associates in Chandigarh.