CBI arrests 3 in bribe case; Rs 1.02 cr recovered

New Delhi, Feb 6 (IANS) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday arrested three persons including two officials of Northeast Frontier Railway (NFR) and a contractor in connection with a bribe case, an official said, adding that the probe agency also recovered Rs 1.02 crore in cash.

The arrested individuals were identified as Santosh Kumar -- senior section engineer at Railways, a resident of Assam's Silchar; Sajjan Kumar, a contractor of a private company based in Guwahati; and Rampal, a deputy chief engineer with Railways.

"A case has been registered against 10 people including four officials of NFR and others including Sajjan Kumar, his firm and his employees," the CBI said.

The CBI said that Santosh and Rampal along with some private persons entered a conspiracy to extend undue favours to the private contractors in awarding the contract agreement and early release of payment against manipulated and inflated bills vis-a-vis construction work in NFR.

"Rampal and Kumar were receiving the bribe amount from Sajjan when they were held," the CBI said.

Later, searches were conducted at around 19 locations in several states -- Assam, Imphal, Delhi, Bihar and Haryana, at the premises of the accused and others, which led to the recovery of Rs 1.02 crore in cash.

All the arrested accused were later presented in court. Rampal and Sajjan have been sent to a five-day CBI remand.