Arrested only months ago by the CBI in a corruption case, a senior railway official in Gorakhpur is now under the scanner of another central agency for alleged money laundering.
The now-suspended principal chief materials officer of the North Eastern Railway in Gorakhpur, KC Joshi, has been booked by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
On September 12, Joshi was arrested by the anti-corruption wing of the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI’s) Lucknow unit for allegedly taking a bribe of ₹3 lakh from a contractor.
The CBI later recovered ₹2.61 crore in cash during searches at his house and offices, and another ₹1.40 crore from different bank accounts owned by him and his family members. Besides, jewellery worth ₹60 lakh was recovered during the searches.
ED officials in Lucknow said the PMLA case was registered on the grounds of recoveries of such big amounts of cash and jewellery from Joshi. They said the CBI had earlier registered an FIR under section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act for accepting gratification other than lawful remuneration, at the CBI, ACB Lucknow unit on the complaint of Pranav Tripathi, the proprietor of M/S Sukti Associates.
The CBI had laid a trap after the complainant said Joshi had demanded ₹5 lakh from him. The CBI’s FIR further stated the complainant alleged that the accused demanded another ₹7 lakh from him so as not to cancel the registration of his firm from the GEM (Government e-Marketplace) portal, which is meant for procurement of goods and services for all central and state governments’ ministries and departments.
{{/usCountry}}The CBI had laid a trap after the complainant said Joshi had demanded ₹5 lakh from him. The CBI’s FIR further stated the complainant alleged that the accused demanded another ₹7 lakh from him so as not to cancel the registration of his firm from the GEM (Government e-Marketplace) portal, which is meant for procurement of goods and services for all central and state governments’ ministries and departments.
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