New DelhI, June 30 -- The Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) of the Delhi Police has arrested an Executive Engineer and a private contractor for orchestrating a massive scam involving the fraudulent release of over Rs 4.6 crore in public funds within the Irrigation & Flood Control (I&FC) Department.

According to ACB officials, payments amounting to more than Rs 4.6 crore were fraudulently disbursed to contractors for civil works that were never carried out.

The scam involved the construction of RCC drains and roads in Village Siraspur, North Delhi, which were found to exist only on paper.

Investigators also uncovered forged performance bank guarantees worth Rs 2.24 crore that were accepted in violation of procedures outlined in the CPWD Works Manual, General Financial Rules (GFR-2005), and Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) guidelines.

The fraud came to light following a complaint to the Vigilance Branch of the I&FC Department. A verification committee led by the Principal Secretary of the department discovered that full payments had been made for four separate tenders without any physical work being executed. The payments were supported by fabricated material test reports, manipulated measurement records, and forged bank documents.

Two individuals have been arrested in connection with the case, Gagan Kureel, then Executive Engineer of CD-VII Division of the I&FC Department, who has been under suspension since December 2023, and Arun Gupta, proprietor of M/s Baba Construction Company. The latter had secured three tenders worth Rs 5.3 crore and fraudulently obtained Rs 4.2 crore without executing any of the sanctioned work.

In another case, M/s Amba Construction Company received Rs 43.74 lakh for repair and painting work at the CTP Network in Burari, despite no work being found on-site.

Original Computerized Measurement Books (CMBs) were also missing, and no mandatory test checks or certifications were conducted.

An FIR has been registered under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Indian Penal Code. The investigation remains active, with further arrests and departmental actions anticipated.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.