Transport scam: Businessmen remanded in judicial custody

A Delhi court today remanded in judicial custody two businessmen arrested for allegedly siphoning off crores of rupees in fitness tests of commercial vehicles in the national capital in connivance with the transport department.
Nitin Mahawat, director of ESP India, and Puran Chand Tamta, CEO of ESP India' alliance partner's Tambros India Ltd, were remanded in custody till March 15 by special judge B R Kedia. The two had been arrested by Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) of Delhi government on February 25 and remanded in police custody till today.
Their arrests were made after a case was registered by the ACB pursuant to the complaint of RTI activist Vivek Garg alleging that the contract for lane test of commercial vehicles before grant of fitness certificates was granted by the Delhi government to ESP India without inviting any tender.

Garg's counsel Jairam had sought registration of FIR against Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, former Transport Minister Arvinder Singh Lovely, former Transport Commissioner R K Verma and ESP India. The ACB had, however, given a clean chit to Dikshit and Lovely saying no irregularity was found on their part.
Mahawat and Tamta are accused of "grabbing the work of fitness test of commercial vehicles from the government by misleading it with the connivance of officials of the transport department and siphoning off crores of rupees".
The ACB had said many officials in transport department were hand in glove with the accused persons and more arrests are likely to be made in the near future.