Excise officials apply for pre-arrest bail

Ambika Sharma

Tribune News Service

Solan, November 12

Fearing arrest after being summoned by the CID for their role in more than Rs 5,000-crore scam involving Paonta Sahib-based Indian Technomac Company, three officials of the Excise and Taxation Department (ETD), including a retired officer, have applied for anticipatory bail.

The case is listed for November 15 and the CID, which is probing the case, will present its stand before the court. These officers — Jyoti Swarup, Deepak Satti and Roshan Lal — were posted at the Behral inter-state barrier as inspectors when the scam took place.

Roshan Lal has, however, retired. The other two officers are posted in Sirmaur district even now and have been promoted as Excise and Taxation Officers (ETOs). “The role of another ETO in this financial scam is being probed by the CID,” said sources.

With crucial evidence in the form of fake Form 26 showing fake transportation of goods to and from other states coming to the fore, CID officials are in the process of corroborating it digitally from the ETD. The company had taken loans worth Rs 2,167 crore from 15 banks in Delhi and its precincts on the basis of a fake Form 26.

The scam was detected in March 2014 and though the company’s movable and immovable assets were sealed in March 2015, the field staff of the ETD connived with the company staff to sell its assets, including the raw material. These facts have been corroborated by the CID probe.

Though a red entry had been made on its assets by the ETD, a small gate, which led to the unit was left open when it was being sealed, it was learnt.

Glaring irregularities had come to light in the ongoing investigation where it was found that the officials of the ETD, while preparing the inventory of assets, had failed to enlist nine vehicles, including SX4, Boleros and motorcycles. These vehicles were bought by the company for its staff and were part of the company’s assets.

Apart from this, machinery and scrap worth about Rs 50 lakh had also been pilfered from the company premises while it was officially sealed.

Inquiries made by the CID sleuths from truck unions also revealed that the office-bearers of the Sirmaur Truck Operators Union, Gondpur, Paonta Sahib, and officials of the Excise and Taxation Department had connived for projecting fake transportation of finished goods to firms of other states.

A case under Sections 120-B, 420, 467, 468, 471, 201, 217, 218 and Sections 5,7, 13 (1) and D(II) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, was registered against Rakesh Kumar Sharma, company’s managing director, Vinay Kumar Sharma, who was the director and the authorised signatory, and Anshu Jain, company’s director, by the CID in 2016 and investigations are still under way.

Material pilfered from Paonta firm

• The scam was unearthed in March 2014. Though the company’s movable and immovable assets were sealed in March 2015, the field staff of the  Excise and Taxation Department  connived with company staff to sell its assets, including the raw material. 
• It was found that the officials, while preparing the inventory of assets, had failed to enlist nine vehicles, including SX4, Boleros and motorcycles. These vehicles were bought by the company for its staff and were part of the assets.
• Machinery and scrap worth about Rs 50 lakh had also been pilfered from the company premises while it was officially sealed.