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New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has taken a significant step by filing a comprehensive chargesheet against former key figures and a contractor in the Delhi Jal Board (DJB) corruption case, exposing a complex web of alleged malpractices in procurement processes. The chargesheet, filed on March 30, 2024, outlines the involvement of a former chief engineer, a contractor, a chartered accountant and a former official of the National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC) as well as a private firm in money laundering. Scheme related to tendering of flow meters.
The charge sheet, spanning 140 pages with an additional 8,000 pages of documents, was submitted to Special Judge Bhupinder Singh, who has scheduled a hearing for April 1. Among the accused are Jagdish Arora, the former Chief Engineer of the DJB; Anil Kumar Agarwal, a contractor; Tejendra Pal Singh, an aide of Arora; and Devender Mittal, a former NBCC officer. The private firm NKG is also implicated, although its director, now deceased, has been spared charges. The ED’s investigation has revealed a proceeds of crime amounting to Rs 6.36 crore, highlighting the scale of the alleged corruption.
According to the ED, the accused collectively manipulated the tender process for supply, installation, testing and commissioning (SITC) of electromagnetic flow meters, a project awarded to M/s NKG Infrastructure Limited on September 20, 2018, for Rs 38.02 crore. Despite failing to meet the technical norms, the contract was awarded to M/s NKG allegedly due to issuance of false certificates by Devender Mittal and subsequently subcontracting the work to M/s Integral Screw Industries owned by Anil Kumar Aggarwal. The investigation revealed that bribes worth approximately Rs 3 crore were transferred to facilitate the award of contracts, underscoring the seriousness of corruption.
The filing of the charge sheet by the ED marks a significant development in the DJB corruption case, highlighting the complex mechanism of corruption allegedly influencing the tender process. With further judicial inquiry into the matter scheduled for April 1, the focus will remain on the ED’s ongoing investigation and its efforts to uncover the full extent of the misconduct. The case not only underlines the challenges of ensuring transparency and accountability in public procurement processes, but also reflects the ED’s commitment to combating corruption and money laundering within India’s public sector.
