The CBI on Wednesday filed a chargesheet against former director general of Ordnance Factory Board Sudipta Ghosh and 11 others on charges of graft.
The 2,700-page chargesheet was filed in a special CBI court here against Ghosh, his wife Kajal Ghosh, Ramesh Nambiar, then additional GM (Sports) Air India, J.K. Thapar, director of T.S. Kishan and Company Private Ltd, Satish Mahajan, director and Sunil Handa, manager of R.K. Machines Tools Ltd, Ludhiana.
Former statistical investigator of National Sample Survey Organisation, J.K. Grover, two private firms T.S. Kisan & Company Private Limited, New Delhi and R.K. Machines Tool Limited, Ludhiana, chairman of Mokul Group of Companies Mohinder Singh Sahni and two private persons — Ashish Bose and Pradeep Rana — were also named in the charge sheet.
The matter will now be heard by the court on July 31.
A case was registered by the CBI on May 17, 2009 under different Sections of the IPC and Prevention of Corruption Act against Ghosh and others. It was alleged that Ghosh had entered into criminal conspiracy with the other accused with the object of demanding and obtaining huge illegal gratification in matters of various supply orders placed by the Ordnance Factory Board on private manufactures, and also in matters relating to transfer or posting of Ordnance Factory officers.
Following the registration of case and subsequent investigation, the CBI had arrested Ghosh and others at various places including Delhi.
“During searches conducted by the CBI, cash amounting to approximately Rs 1.41 crore was seized from the residences and bank lockers of the former DG and his wife. Another Rs 1.14 crore was recovered from the premises of other accused persons,” CBI spokesperson Harsh Bhal said.
A Letters Rogatory (LR) was issued by Special CBI Judge, Kolkata, to the central authority in Singapore for investigation. The LR is pending execution.
“Further investigation in this case is continuing,” he said.
Ghosh to habitually negotiated bribes with domestic and foreign suppliers of defence equipment to the Ordnance factories through his conduit (Ashish Bose) based at Gagan Vihar, Delhi, the official said.
Three separate cases were also registered by the CBI against Ghosh, Nambiar and Grover for possessing assets disproportionate to their known sources of income. “These cases are under investigation,” Bhal said.
