The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday conducted searches at more than 30 locations in connection with alleged irregularities in the award of Kiru hydroelectric project works. These included searches at premises of former Jammu and Kashmir Governor Satya Pal Malik.
The searches were carried out in Jammu, Srinagar, Delhi, Gurugram, Mumbai, Baghpat, Noida, Patna, Jaipur, Jodhpur, Barmer, Nagaur and Chandigarh. In January, the CBI had conducted searches in Delhi, and Jammu and Kashmir, in the case related to alleged irregularities in the award of tender for civil works of the Kiru Hydroelectric Project being executed by the Chenab Valley Power Projects (P) Limited (CVPPPL).
Mr. Malik took to X (formerly Twitter) to say that he is currently admitted in a hospital due to ill health. “Despite this, my house is being raided by the dictator through government agencies... instead of investigating the people I had complained about who were involved in corruption,” he wrote.
Mr. Malik had alleged corruption in two J&K schemes while he was the Meghalaya Governor. This included the hydel project, stating that it ran to ₹300 crore. He has also criticised the Modi government on multiple occasions in the past, on issues ranging from the 2019 Pulwama attack to alleged corruption in Goa, where he was the Governor after being shifted out of J&K. Even though in BJP since 2004, Mr. Malik criticised the Centre on the farmers’ protests of 2020-21 and raised questions over the abrogation of Article 370.
Congress MP Rahul Gandhi took the opportunity to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He posted on X: “...If the former Governor tells the truth, then send CBI to his house — this is the Mother of Democracy?...”
CBI official said that “evidence of huge cash deposits, investment in fixed deposits, investment in properties in various cities, digital and documentary evidence, etc.” were found in the searches.
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