BMC’s purchase of body bags at tenfold rate under ED scanner

The agency recovered documents during its searches at around 15 locations on Wednesday to buttress its claims. “The searches also revealed that the same entity which supplied body bags to the BMC for ₹6,800 was selling them to others for ₹2,000 a piece,” said an ED official

MUMBAI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED)’s probe into alleged irregularities related to the awarding of contracts for the Jumbo Covid-19 centres in the city found that the BMC’s central purchase department (CPD) had allegedly purchased body bags from a private firm at the rate of ₹6,800 per piece, inclusive of taxes, which was around 10 times more the rate at which it purchased bags from another private supplier.

The agency has also come across fixed deposits/investments worth ₹15 crore belonging to the wife of a civic official under the scanner, which were stated to be ‘gifted’ to her by her mother. “The searches resulted in the seizure of cash amounting to ₹68.65 lakh,” said an ED source. “Documents found also revealed fixed deposits/investments of ₹15 crore, jewellery worth ₹2.46 crore, along with mobile phones, laptops and various incriminating records/documents.” (Satish Bate/HT PHOTO)

The agency recovered documents during its searches at around 15 locations on Wednesday to buttress its claims. “The searches also revealed that the same entity which supplied body bags to the BMC for ₹6,800 was selling them to others for ₹2,000 a piece,” said an ED official. “The contract was given on the instructions of the then mayor of the BMC, whose role we are verifying.” The agency is also scrutinising conversations on WhatsApp between a civic official and representatives of certain private supplier/s with respect to irregular acquisitions.

Documents recovered in the agency’s searches also helped it identify 50-odd immovable properties across Maharashtra worth around ₹150 crore. ED sources said the source of funding of these properties would be verified to determine if they were connected to the proceeds of crime in the case.

The agency has also come across fixed deposits/investments worth ₹15 crore belonging to the wife of a civic official under the scanner, which were stated to be ‘gifted’ to her by her mother. “The searches resulted in the seizure of cash amounting to ₹68.65 lakh,” said an ED source. “Documents found also revealed fixed deposits/investments of ₹15 crore, jewellery worth ₹2.46 crore, along with mobile phones, laptops and various incriminating records/documents.”

The ED probe is related to a First Information Report (FIR) lodged at Azad Maidan police station in August 2022 against the partners of Lifeline Hospital Management Services (LHMS), contracted by the BMC to set up two jumbo centres. Businessman Sujit Patkar is one of the firm’s partners, and his premises, including those of his firm, were searched on Wednesday. According to the FIR, the company got the contract using allegedly forged documents and had no experience of providing manpower for any medical or health facility.

According to the FIR, after a news channel journalist died of Covid in Pune in 2020, the Pune Municipal Corporation and Pune Metropolitan Region Development Authority (PMRDA) jointly probed Lifeline. The PMRDA also seized the firm’s security deposit of ₹25 lakh and issued a direction to blacklist it. Despite this, the BMC awarded the same company a contract worth ₹38 crore to provide services at two jumbo centres.

ED sources on Thursday said the agency’s probe also found that Covid-19 medicines were provided to the BMC at rates that were 25 to 30 per cent more than in the open market. “This was despite the fact that such a disparity in the rates had been pointed out to the civic body,” said an ED source. “Surprisingly, the purchase was continued at the insistence of certain senior BMC officials. Also, at a Lifeline Jumbo Covid Centre, the actual deployment of doctors and medical staff was found to be 60 to 65 per cent less than the deployment shown in the billing made to the BMC.”

The agency gathered case-related records from the BMC CPD’s Byculla office today and sought clarifications related to certain allegedly irregular contracts. The then BMC additional municipal commissioner Sanjeev Jaiswal, whose premises had been searched on Wednesday, was summoned for questioning on Thursday but did not turn up. ED sources said he would be called in afresh.