Court extends police remand of IAS, RAS officer

JAIPUR, June 4:
A court today extended till June 8 the police remand of suspended IAS officer Neeraj K Pawan and Rajasthan Administrative Service officer Anil Kumar Agarwal who were arrested by anti-corruption bureau in connection with a bribery case involving Rs 1.5 crore.
“Both of them were produced in the ACB court where the magistrate extended their police remand. They will now be produced before the court on June 8,” IG ACB V K Singh said.
The accused officials, now suspended, were arrested on May 30 in connection with a case registered on May 17 with the ACB.
Other three accused who were arrested on May 18 — Ajeet Soni, Deepa Gupta and Joji Varghese – are under judicial custody.
The ACB had on May 18 busted an alleged nexus between senior officers, including Pawan, and Soni, a middleman in the office of National Health Mission of medical and health department.
The complainant who registered the FIR had allegedly given over Rs 1.5 crore as bribe to Soni to get contracts of work under NHM worth Rs 7 crore.
The main accused in the case is Soni who used to allegedly collect bribe in form of consultancy fees from firms in lieu of getting them tenders from the department in collaboration with the officers.
Soni used to allegedly distribute bribe among Pawan, former Additional Mission Director of NHM, Agarwal, Additional Director IEC, Deepa Gupta, Chief Accounts Officer and Joji Varghese, store keeper. (PTI)