Jaipur, Feb 17 (IANS) The Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the Rajasthan Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), on Tuesday, carried out early morning raids at multiple locations and arrested nine accused in connection with the alleged multi-crore corruption case related to the Jal Jeevan Mission, officials said.

The action was taken in a case registered by the ACB regarding large-scale irregularities in the implementation of the Jal Jeevan Mission in Rajasthan, officials added.

Nearly six ACB teams conducted coordinated operations in Jaipur, Barmer, Udaipur, Karauli, Delhi, and other locations, leading to the arrest of nine individuals.

The arrested officials include Dinesh Goyal, Chief Engineer (Administration); K.D. Gupta, Chief Engineer (Rural); Subhanshu Dixit, then Rajasthan Water Supply and Sewerage Management Board Secretary and current Additional Secretary; Sushil Sharma, Chief Engineer of Jaipur Region-II; Niril Kumar, Financial Advisor (Renewable Energy); Vishal Saxena, Executive Engineer (currently suspended); Arun Srivastava, Additional Chief Engineer (retired); D.K. Gaud, then Chief Engineer and Technical Member (retired); and Mahendra Prakash Soni, then Superintending Engineer (retired).

During the investigation, it was revealed that M/s Shri Ganpati Tubewell Company (Proprietor: Shri Mahesh Mittal) and M/s Shri Shyam Tubewell Company (Proprietor: Shri Padmachand Jain) allegedly prepared forged completion certificates in the name of IRCON International Limited, officials said.

In alleged connivance with senior officials of the Public Health Engineering Department (PHED), tenders worth nearly Rs 960 crore were secured by submitting fake certificates.

The investigation also found that senior PHED officials violated tender norms by including site visit certificates in high-value projects (above Rs 50 crore), disclosing bidder identities, and manipulating tender processes.

These actions allegedly led to unusually high tender premiums, which were subsequently approved, causing losses amounting to thousands of crores of rupees, officials added.

For a swift and comprehensive probe, an SIT was constituted under the chairmanship of Rajasthan ACB’s Superintendent of Police, Pushpendra Singh Rathod.

The SIT team conducted an in-depth examination of technical and documentary evidence.

Earlier, the ACB had registered a case in connection with corruption in the Jal Jeevan Mission following a trap operation.

A charge sheet was filed before the competent court against 11 accused and two firms in the case.

The present arrests were made after detailed evidence analysis by the SIT under the supervision of Inspector General of Police Rajesh Singh and Deputy Inspector General of Police Rameshwar Singh.

Further questioning and legal proceedings are underway under the supervision of ACB Additional Director General Smita Srivastava.

–IANS

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