The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has recently filed a fresh case against Santosh Kumar, a Senior Section Engineer in the Northeast Frontier Railway zone, alleging bribery amounting to Rs 75 lakh. This comes after Kumar’s arrest in February related to a separate Rs 2 crore bribe case. According to officials, the CBI has accused Bhartia Infra Projects Limited (BIPL), the contractor responsible for railway infrastructure construction and maintenance, of being awarded 106 contracts in the Northeast region between 2010 and 2023.
During the investigation into the bribery case involving Kumar, who is currently suspended, the CBI found evidence of Rs 75 lakh being transferred from BIPL’s accounts to the accounts of Kumar’s family members. The agency alleges that Kumar received this amount as an “undue advantage” from various BIPL accounts in State Bank of India, Axis Bank, and HDFC Bank. The alleged bribery was reportedly aimed at facilitating the smooth passage of contract bills during the period from 2019 to 2022.
As part of the fresh case, the CBI has booked Ambika Saw and Pushpa Kumari, Kumar’s father and wife, respectively, along with BIPL. Kumar began his career in the railways as a Junior Engineer in Silchar in 2009 and eventually rose to become a Senior Section Engineer. He was posted at the Deputy Chief Engineer Construction office until his arrest in February.
In February, the CBI arrested Kumar while he was allegedly receiving a partial payment of Rs 8 lakh from a construction company, leading to the subsequent arrest of his superior, Deputy Chief Engineer Rampal, and searches conducted at 19 locations. The ongoing investigation by the CBI aims to bring those involved in these bribery cases to justice and uphold the integrity of railway infrastructure projects in the Northeast region.
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