Delhi CM’s relative arrested in PWD ‘scam’
The Delhi government’s anti-corruption branch (ACB) on Thursday arrested chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s relative Vinay Bansal in connection with the alleged Public Works Department (PWD) scam that involved submitting fake bills to claim money for construction work.
The accused, Vinay Bansal, is the son of Kejriwal’s late brother-in-law Surender Bansal. A Delhi court sent him to one-day judicial custody.
Special commissioner of police Arvind Deep, who heads the anti-graft unit, confirmed Bansal’s arrest.
“He was a partner at the firm along with his father. In the PWD scam case, their company had submitted bills for purchasing materials for a construction work. Our investigation revealed there are no such firms. The bills were fake. He was arrested today.”
The ACB falls under the Vigilance Department of the Delhi government but its chief and other senior officers are appointed by the Lieutenant Governor (L-G) and they report to him.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) hit out at the ACB, saying the action was aimed at maligning the chief minister’s image.
“This is nothing but an attempt to malign the chief minister’s image and harass his relatives,” AAP’s Delhi unit chief spokesperson Saurabh Bharadwaj said.
The ACB had registered an FIR on a complaint filed by whistle blower Rahul Sharma who alleged that Surender Bansal had allegedly shown fake bills and taken money from the PWD for construction work.
Police filed three first information reports (FIRs) in May 2017 to probe the alleged corruption charges against Surender and senior PWD officers for billing the department by submitting purchase bills of raw materials from firms, which existed only on paper. Bansal died on the day the FIRs were registered.
The bills of around ₹6 crore were for supposed construction work at two sites in Bakoli village and Indira Nehru Camp in Delhi. Whistleblower Sharma, an engineer by profession, is the founder of Roads Anti Corruption Organisation(RACO).
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