Railgate Report-

CBI files charge sheet in Railway bribery case, Bansal gets clean chit

Staff Reporter

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday filed a chargesheet against suspended Railway Board Member (Staff) Mahesh Kumar and former Railway Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal’s nephew Vijay Singla, besides eight others, in the alleged cash-for-post case, following an assurance by the Railway Ministry that the sanction for prosecution of the main accused would be granted in a couple of days.

“Mr. Bansal has been given a clean chit in the case. The probe into the allegations in the case has been completed. However, two more preliminary enquiries into other allegations of irregularities are still underway,” said a CBI official, adding that the agency had been assured that the sanction to prosecute Kumar would be granted soon.
The chargesheet in the trap case has been filed under Section 120B (conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code and the relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Those named in the final report are Mahesh Kumar, his associate and managing director of Bangalore-based G.G. Tronics India Private Limited, Narayan Rao Manjunath, Mr. Bansal’s nephew Vijay Singla, his accomplice Sandeep Goyal, Ajay Garg, Rahul Yadav, Samir Sandhir, Sushil Daga, C.V. Venugopal and M.V. Murali Krishan.
“It is alleged in the chargesheet that Singla had demanded Rs.10 crore from Kumar for shifting him to the post of Member (Electrical) laterally from the post of Member (Staff).  The money was to be delivered to him in instalments. Whereas Rs. two crore was to be paid immediately as the first instalment, Rs. three crore was to be paid after the appointment and Rs. five crore after five or six months. Goyal and Garg operated as conduits in the deal,” said a CBI official.
The official said Manjunath had mobilised the bribe amount at the behest of Kumar from S&T Manufacturer & Traders. “The first amount of Rs. two crore was decided to be delivered in two instalments of Rs. one crore each on May 3 and the next delivery was to take place about four days later. However, the accused could arrange only about Rs. 90 lakh which was being paid to Singla and another accused when the CBI laid a trap and arrested them on May 3.”
The couriers employed allegedly by Manjunath in conspiracy with Kumar have not been chargesheeted in the case.