CBI books GAIL's marketing head E S Ranganathan in bribery case

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has booked Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL)’s Director (Marketing) E S Ranganathan in a bribery scandal involving the sale of petrochemicals manufactured by GAIL at a discount. A CBI statement said, that the investigative agency conducted searches at the premises of the accused at Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon, Panchkula, and Karnal among others. This led to the recovery of approximately Rs 84 lakh so far which includes recovery of Rs 75 lakh from a Gurgaon-based private person.

The other accused in the case are Pawan Gaur (a private person), Rajesh Kumar (director of Rishabh Polychem, Delhi), N Ramakrishnan Nair (a Gurgaon resident), Saurabh Gupta (associated with United Polymer Industries, Panchkula), and Aditya Bansal (associated with Bansal Agencies, Karnal). CBI said that these five accused have been arrested in this case till now. United Polymer Industries and Bansal Agencies have also been named in the CBI’s first information report (FIR).

CBI also said that searches were continuing at the premises of Ranganathan.

The CBI has alleged that Ranganathan was “indulging into corrupt and illegal activities in conspiracy with other accused who were acting as his middleman, by obtaining bribe from the private companies buying petrochemical products marketed by the GAIL.”

CBI said that it laid a trap and apprehended a private person and a Director of a Private Company based in Delhi with an alleged bribe amount of Rs 10 lakh which was collected on behalf of Ranganathan.

According to the CBI’s FIR, the GAIL Director (Marketing) had demanded a bribe of Rs 15 lakh for issuing the discount order in favour of the beneficiary companies.