DJB case: Delhi court issues notice to ED on bail plea of accused in money laundering case

New Delhi, April 5 (IANS) A Delhi court on Friday issued notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on a bail application filed by CA Tejinder Pal Singh, a key accused in the money laundering case related to the alleged irregularities in the tender awards by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB). 

Special Judge Bhupinder Singh of Rouse Avenue Court directed the agency to respond to the bail application and scheduled the matter for a hearing on April 8.

The court had on Thursday directed the probe agency to furnish a copy of the charge sheet to the accused in connection with the case.

The ED, in its charge sheet filed at a court here, claimed that over Rs 2 crore was transferred for election funding of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).

Those named in the charge sheet are former DJB's Chief Engineer Jagdish Kumar Arora, contractor Anil Kumar Agarwal, former NBCC general manager D.K. Mittal, Tejinder Pal Singh, and NKG Infrastructure Ltd, whose director has passed away and has not been named an accused in the case.

Arora and Aggarwal, who are presently in judicial custody, were presented before the court by the authorities following directives issued by the court on Wednesday, while Tejinder Pal Singh appeared before the court in response to a summons issued earlier. Meanwhile, the fourth accused, Mittal, filed an application seeking an exemption from personal appearance for the day.

The court, scheduling the next hearing for April 20, has put up the matter for scrutiny of documents related to the case.

The case pertains to alleged corruption in the tendering of flow metre procurement.

"Investigation revealed that the remaining proceeds of crime (bribe) to the tune of Rs 2,00,78,242 which had been acquired by Jagdish Kumar Arora, was transferred by him through Tejinder Pal Singh to various persons including other officers of Delhi Jal Board. The investigation also revealed that Jagdish Kumar Arora and other officers of Delhi Jal Board further transferred part of the said proceeds of crime for election funding of the AAP," the chargesheet, accessed by IANS, read.

It stated that the investigation into the roles of Arora, Aggarwal, Mittal, Tejinder Pal Singh and NKG Infrastructure Ltd in the offence of money laundering and proceeds of crime utilised by them is complete, but the probe with respect to the final utilisation of the proceeds of crime amounting to Rs 2,00,78,242, which was transferred to various persons including officers of Delhi Jal Board and for election funding of AAP, is underway.

Initially, the CBI had filed an FIR in December 2021 implicating Arora in a conspiracy with NKG Infrastructure Ltd. to secure a Rs 38 crore contract in 2018 for the supply, installation testing, and commissioning (SITC) of electromagnetic flow metres. According to a CBI FIR filed in 2022, it has been alleged that despite complaints about NKG Infrastructure's non-compliance with contract eligibility criteria, the contract worth approximately Rs 38 crore was awarded to them.

The FIR claims that Arora, along with three subordinates, conspired to issue false certificates to NKG Infrastructure.

In July 2022, the CBI booked Arora and others under various sections, including criminal conspiracy and cheating. The ED also filed a case in September 2022 and later also conducted raids. In January, Arora and Aggarwal were arrested by the ED for alleged bribery related to the contract. Aggarwal is accused of transferring Rs 3 crore in bribes to Arora's relatives and associates.