Interim anticipatory bail to ex-IAS officer

LUCKNOW : The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court on Tuesday granted interim anticipatory bail to former IAS officer Pradeep Shukla in the NRHM scam case. He had approached the high court after the sessions court rejected his anticipatory bail on May 25.

Trial of the case is on in the court of district and sessions judge Sanjay Shanker Pandey, who is also special judge of PMLA court.

A single-judge bench of Justice Subhash Vidyarthi observed: “It is directed that in the event of arrest/appearance of applicant (Pradeep Shukla) before the learned trial court till the next date of listing in the aforesaid case, he shall be released on interim anticipatory bail in the aforesaid case.”

In the NRHM scam, the CBI had lodged an FIR on January 18, 2012 and charge sheet was filed by it before the court of the special judge (anti- corruption, CBI), Ghaziabad. The then government had awarded several contracts in various NRHM projects without fulfilling norms, according to the Enforcement Directorate’s complaint in court.

Kanpur-based businessmen brothers, including Rakesh Kumar Tandon, Pradeep Kumar Tandon, and Anoop Kumar Tandon, were also accused in the case.

The ED had filed a complaint against eight people, including Pradeep Shukla, who was posted as principal secretary (medical and health), alleging illegalities in the procurement of RO systems for CHCs and PHCs under the National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scheme. The agency had alleged that supplies were procured at exorbitant rates, thereby causing a loss to the tune of Rs 6,03,21,135 to the state exchequer.