Politicians sought help from ex-official to dilute cases: CBI

The documents and interrogation of former Superintendent of Police of the CBI J P Verma, who is at present in five day CBI custody, show that his "client list" included bureaucrats and politicians who were under probe by the agency, official sources alleged.

Verma was arrested on Friday for allegedly receiving money through a middleman -- Ramesh Gandhi -- to dilute a case against Milind Kumar Dey who is an accused in a CBI case for alleged bungling in grant of accreditation to law colleges in Bulandsher and Jaipur.

Dey was also arrested by the CBI on Friday, the sources said.

According to the CBI, Verma, who also worked as Deputy Commissioner in Civil Aviation Security, opened an aviation company in South Delhi after his retirement and had appointed some former agency officials as his consultants.

The sources alleged that the former officials were being used to influence their friends and colleagues in the CBI to dilute the cases against people who approached Verma's consultancy firm for help.

The clientele included some politicians and bureaucrats who have been facing cases in the CBI, the sources alleged, but refused to identify the people saying that investigation was still on.