The Delhi police will issue a Red notice against controversial middleman Sanjay Bhandari, under investigation for possessing classified Defence Ministry documents, a senior Home Ministry official told The Hindu .
Mr. Bhandari and his wife are untraceable, the official said, adding that several raids and searches by the police had been unsuccessful.
A case under the Official Secrets Act was registered against Mr. Bhandari on October 16. The case follows searches in April at his Defence Colony residence when Income Tax officials recovered secret documents.
The searches were in connection with suspicions regarding eight companies associated with Mr. Bhandari, including his flagship company, Offset India Solutions, set up in 2008. Mr. Bhandari is a consultant and offered liaison services in the defence sector.
He is known for his proximity to people in corridors of power during the UPA regime and also in the current NDA dispensation.
Classified documents
The official said the I-T department had sent to the Ministry a tranche of what it said were ‘classified’ documents on major defence procurements underway.
Officials said they could not confirm if he had escaped to London via Nepal as reported in a newspaper on Wednesday.
A senior Home Ministry official told The Hindu , “Immigration authorities have informed us that Bhandari has not left from any Indian port. As there is a look out circular against him, he would have been stopped.”
The look out circular was issued after the Delhi police registered a case in October. The case was transferred to the Crime Branch on November 11.
“We will be issuing a red corner notice against Bhandari. We conducted daily raids and searches at premises associated with Bhandari and his wife, but they continue to evade us. Investigations are on. We are not sure about his escape to London,” said the Home Ministry official.
In the FIR against Mr. Bhandari, the Defence Ministry had alleged that documents pertaining to policy planning and Force Development branch of the ministry were recovered from his residence.
Mr. Bhandari is also being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Income Tax Department for tax evasion.
