Police issue notices to Sonepat MC officials in ₹1.11cr fraud case
GURUGRAM: Faridabad police on Saturday sent notices to three Municipal Corporation of Sonepat (MCS) officials summoning them to join the investigation of a ₹1.11 crore fraud case registered on June 22.
According to police, Lalit Mittal, a government contractor from Delhi, alleged he was duped of ₹1.11 crore on the pretext of enhancing a construction tender. He was allotted a tender to construct a building for the corporation, following which an acquaintance named BS Garg requested a meeting with him to enhance the tender from ₹48 crore to ₹80 crore.
Mittal alleged that Garg, along with two others, offered to get the work done through MCS officials and demanded the money as bribe. Mittal received a new tender of allotment but could not begin work because the urban local bodies department raised an objection.
According to Narender Kadian, deputy commissioner of police (crime), a case under sections 406 (criminal breach of trust),420 (cheating),506 (criminal intimidation), 120b (conspiracy) of the IPC has been registered against Garg and two others, identified as RB Sharma and JK Bhatia from Faridabad at Kotwali police station. All the three named in the FIR acted as middlemen between Mittal and the MCS officials, said police.
Police said Garg introduced Mittal to Sharma and Bhatia and offered him projects at a meeting that was organised in a hotel six months ago.
“Sharma arrived at the meeting with a police gunman and tried to pass off as an influential businessman with police and government connections, including the MCS. They asked Mittal to pay ₹1.11 crore in cash,” Kadian said.
Mittal followed up after a month as he did not receive any update regarding the tender allotted to him and asked for his money back. The suspects then organised meetings and got the tender enhanced, said police.
Kadian said the tender allotment was issued but the construction work could not begin as the urban local bodies department in Panchkula objected to the tender amount.