HC tells petitioner to deposit Rs 50,000 before it hears PIL

The Bombay High Court today asked a petitioner to deposit Rs 50,000 with the Registry before it hears a PIL filed by him seeking transfer of probe from Mumbai police to Anti-corruption Bureau (ACB) in the alleged road contract scam and desilting scam involving civic officials.
The direction was given by a bench headed by Justice V M Kanade which adjourned till August 9 the hearing on a PIL filed by Vivekananda Gupta, a lawyer and Secretary of Mumbai BJP.
The petition said there was waterlogging in the mega-polis on July 19 and 20 last year due to heavy rains following which the Mumbai Municipal Commissioner had ordered an inquiry into the desilting contract work.

The probe brought out an "unholy nexus" between contractors and civic officials, the petition alleged.
Subsequently, the Civic Commissioner ordered filing of FIR against contractors involved in the 'desilting scam', also known as 'nalla safai scam'.
The Chief Engineer (Vigilance) and a few officials of MCGM (Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai) were suspended. The 'nalla safai scam' exposed the fraud and nexus of contractors with MCGM officials, the PIL alleged.

In another development in the 'road contract scam', a probe was ordered by the Municipal Commissioner on a complaint received from a BJP MP and the Mumbai Mayor.
The probe pertained to construction of roads during 2013-14, 2014 -15 and 2015-16. The interim probe showed serious irregularities in the road work. The municipal chief ordered registration of an FIR, the PIL said.

The FIR named six accused including third party road auditors and the Chief Engineer (Roads) was suspended immediately.
The petition demanded that the probe be transferred to ACB in view of alleged nexus of contractors with civic staff.
Later, the FIR pertaining to the 'desilting scam' was transferred from Azad Maidan police station to the Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of Mumbai Police, the PIL added.