The Madras High Court on Monday sought a report from the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) on the status of five highway widening projects.
The projects were the subject matter of a complaint related to large-scale corruption and nepotism in the award of civil contracts by the Highways Department, a portfolio held by Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami.
‘File report by Sept. 24’
Since two of those projects were funded by the World Bank (WB), Justice A.D. Jagadish Chandira also wanted to know as to when the steering committees as well as the empowered committees for the projects were formed as per World Bank guidelines and who were their members. The report was ordered to be filed by September 24 and further hearing was adjourned to September 26.
The interim orders were passed on a petition filed by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam organising secretary R.S. Bharathi who had sought a direction to register a First Information Report on the basis of his June 13 complaint.
He claimed that the contract for the ₹1,515 crore Oddanchatram-Dharapuram-Avinashipalayam stretch had been awarded to a firm owned by Chief Minister’s relatives.
Arguing on behalf of the petitioner, Senior Counsel N.R. Elango contended that the contract was awarded in gross violation of the World Bank guidelines which insist on avoiding conflict of interest.
He pointed out that in the present case, the empowered committee constituted for the Oddanchatram project was led by the Chief Minister in his capacity as the Minister for Highways.
‘Not a criminal offence’
Further, referring to Section 409 (criminal breach of trust by a public servant) of the Indian Penal Code, the senior counsel argued that the complaint lodged by the petitioner makes out a clear case for registration of an FIR forthwith.
He also wondered how the DVAC could have concluded preliminary inquiry without obtaining a statement from a single official of the World Bank.
“They ought to have examined the officials of World Bank. When they have not done so, the so called preliminary inquiry is only a farce. When the contract says clear that it should fall within the World Bank guidelines and the guidelines makes the contractor ineligible, what more do you want to register a FIR?” the senior counsel asked.
Advocate General Vijay Narayan said, even assuming that the contract had been awarded in violation of the guidelines, it would, at the most, lead only to civil consequences entitling a rival bidder to challenge the award of the contract and by no stretch of imagination become a criminal offence.
When the judge wanted to know how many people had bid for the Oddanchatram project, the A-G said that only one had bid.
He quickly added that in the last 20 years, 281 contracts had been awarded in the State to sole bidders and most of those contracts were not even called through online system as it was done in the present case.Assuring the court that he was prepared to face the case head on, he said: “We do not want to run away from the court. I’ll answer all questions posed by this court.” The AG agreed to provide all details sought by the court on Monday along with his arguments in writing. He also said a copy of the details would be served on the petitioner’s counsel
