Enforcement Directorate attaches Rs 8.8 crore properties of former DJB engineer, others
New Delhi, April 3
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached assets worth Rs 8.8 crore of a former chief engineer of the Delhi Jal Board (DJB), Jagdish Kumar Arora, and others in connection with a money laundering case related to alleged corruption in awarding work contracts to a private company.
According to ED sources, the attached properties, located in Delhi, belong to Arora, his wife Alka Arora, Anil Kumar Aggarwal (proprietor of Integral Screw Industries, a subcontractor) and NKG Infrastructure Limited, the company awarded a contract worth Rs 38 crore.
The agency’s investigation stems from an FIR registered by the CBI, alleging that Arora awarded a flowmeter contract for the DJB to NKG Infrastructure at an inflated cost, despite the company failing to meet technical eligibility criteria. The ED further alleges that NKG Infrastructure secured the contract using forged documents.
Arora, allegedly aware of the company’s lack of eligibility, approved the tender, according to sources.
NKG Infrastructure subcontracted the work to Integral Screws, a proprietorship firm owned by Aggarwal.
Out of the Rs 24 crore received by DJB, only around Rs 14 crore was reportedly used for contract work, with the remaining funds allegedly siphoned off or used for bribes, according to ED sources. It is also alleged that Arora received Rs 3.19 crore in bribes, of which he transferred Rs 2 crore to other DJB officials and the Aam Aadmi Party as election funds.
Earlier, the ED conducted searches on July 24, 2023, and November 17, 2023, following which Arora and Aggarwal were arrested on January 31, 2024. Both accused are currently in judicial custody.
AAP Rajya Sabha MP from Punjab Raghav Chadha was the Vice-Chairperson of the DJB from 2020-22. He was replaced by Saurabh Bhardwaj after Chadha was nominated to the Upper House of Parliament. With the central agency already detaining top brass of the party, there is speculation that the focus could now shift towards the AAP MP in the DJB case.
