CBI books Delhi-based caterer in cheating case

NEWDELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has registered a case against a Delhi-based caterer for claiming to possess close contacts in the CBI, including officers involved in probing a high-profile case, and could obtain favours from the agency.

Rakesh Tiwari, the caterer, was earlier arrested in connection with the Palika Services Officers Institute (PSOI) bribery scandal in August 2018 for trying to cheat Sudhir Giri, the owner of Venkateshwara Medical College, by promising him relief in a probe by the agency.

Giri is a key accused in the 2017 medical college scam involving retired Odisha high court judge I M Quddusi and others and has already been charge sheeted.

In the new First Information Report (FIR), reviewed by Hindustan Times, CBI named Tiwari along with two other men – Raj Kumar Gupta and Vipin Agrawal -- and conducted raids on Saturday at four locations, three in Delhi and one in Ghaziabad.

The FIR alleges that Tiwari contacted Gupta and Agrawal in 2018 claiming he had close contacts in the CBI, including the investigating officer of the medical college scam involving Quddusi and Giri and that he could obtain favours from the agency for Giri. Gupta deputed a person, now dead, to contact Giri and negotiate with him.

“To convince Gupta and Agrawal he had contacts in CBI, Tiwari even told them that the agency had around 160 recorded telephonic conversations in the medical scam case. He even told them specific words in these conversations so that Giri is convinced and pays,” said a CBI official, who didn’t wish to be named. The agency even charge sheeted two of its officers – additional superintendent of police Rohit Srivastava and Inspector Rabindra Pradhan – along with Tiwari in October 2018 for allegedly leaking information related to some cases.

A CBI spokesperson clarified on Saturday that the PSOI case and the fresh case registered against Tiwari were not linked. It has not named any public servant in its latest FIR, nor has it invoked the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Tiwari and other accused persons named in the FIR could not be located by HT on Saturday. Quddusi’s lawyer Vijay Aggarwal declined to comment.