CBI arrests Power Grid Corporation ED and 5 others in bribery case involving Tata Projects

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday arrested Power Grid Corporation Executive Director BS Jha and five other people in a bribery case involving Tata Projects.

The agency has arrested five employees of Tata Projects, which include vice-president Deshraj Pathak and assistant vice-president RN Singh.

The agency conducted searches at around 11 places including New Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, and Ghaziabad in connection with the case. During the searches, CBI recovered Rs 93 lakh cash from the premises of BS Jha.

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Jha, who was posted in Itanagar, was under the surveillance of CBI during which the agency got input that he was allegedly receiving bribes from the executives of Tata Projects and other companies for granting favours.

Tata Projects was given the contracts under World Bank-funded North Eastern Region Power System Improvement Project, a comprehensive scheme for improving the power infrastructure of the region, they said. The company was working on the Sikkim and Arunachal Pradesh regions under the scheme.

The role of Desh Raj Pathak, Executive Vice President and SBU Head (Transmission & Distribution) India, SAARC and SEA at Tata Projects Ltd; and R N Singh, AVP Business Head--Distribution came to the fore while the CBI was keeping an eye on Jha's activities.

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The CBI has alleged that Jha was acting in pursuance of a criminal conspiracy extending favours to Tata Projects for various work, including preparation of inflated bills, early clearing of bills, and price variation clause, in return of illegal gratification from the company. All the six arrested accused will be produced before Panchkula court on Thursday.

"We adhere to strong norms in all our business transactions and have zero tolerance for any compromise on the same. We would extend our complete support to the relevant authorities," Tata Projects said in a statement.