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Four ex-RNN officials arrested in BSP govt’s multi-crore memorial scam
Over seven years after registration of FIR, the UP police vigilance wing on Friday arrested four former senior officials of UP Rajkiya Nirman Nigam (RNN) in connection with multi-crore scam in memorials built in Lucknow and Gautam Buddh Nagar during Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) regime between 2007 and 2011, said senior vigilance officials
Over seven years after registration of FIR, the UP police vigilance wing on Friday arrested four former senior officials of UP Rajkiya Nirman Nigam (RNN) in connection with multi-crore scam in memorials built in Lucknow and Gautam Buddh Nagar during Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) regime between 2007 and 2011, said senior vigilance officials.
They said the vigilance team arrested them after getting prosecution sanction against them from the state government two days ago.
The case was lodged in 2014 by the UP police vigilance wing during the then Samajwadi Party government.
A senior vigilance official privy to the investigation said those arrested were identified as the then financial advisor Vimal Kant Mridul, general manager (technical) Surendra Kumar Tyagi, general manager (sodic) Krishna Kumar and unit in charge Rameshwar Sharma.
He said the vigilance wing had also got FIR registered against the then public works minister Naseemuddin Siddiqui, then minister for geology and mines Babu Singh Kushwaha, former MD of Rajkiya Nirman Nigam (RNN) C P Singh, former joint director of geology and mines department Suhail Ahmad Farooqui and 16 engineers of RNN.
He said they were accused of siphoning off funds for the purchase of sandstone for the construction of memorials and parks during the BSP government.
He said the FIR stated that total expenditure of ₹4148.54 crore was done on the construction of five memorials at Lucknow and Gautam Buddh Nagar.
He said the FIR reads that at least 34% ( ₹1410.50 crore) of the actual amount had been siphoned off by the two ministers and the government officials by buying sandstone at inflated rates.
The official said the four arrested accused were found involved in causing anomalies in fixing the rates of sandstone purchased from Mirzapur stand stone firm. He said a vigilance team will soon file chargesheet against them.
He said the vigilance had earlier filed chargesheet against former joint director of geology and mines department Suhail Ahmad Farooqui, the then RNN unit in-charges— Ajay Kumar, Sunil Kumar Tyagi, Hoshiyar Singh Tarkar and two consortiums’ head Panna Lal Yadav and Ashok Singh in October 2020 but they were not arrested as they had stay order in the matter.
He said so far investigation suggested the involvement of 22 people.
