A Delhi court today refused to grant bail to a contractor, arrested by the Anti Corruption Branch in connection with a construction scam, observing that the allegations levelled against him were grave.
Special Judge Sanjay Khanagwal dismissed the bail application of Vinay Bansal, who was produced before the court on expiry of his one-day police custody, and sent him to judicial custody of 14 days.
Bansal is the son of the late brother-in-law of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.
The judge, while denying him the relief, accepted the submissions of the investigating officer that despite the registration of the FIR since last one year, the accused has not joined the investigation and has not cooperated during custodial interrogation.
The court said these facts "cannot be ignored at the time of consideration of bail".
The court also noted that the offences alleged against the accused were not only of cheating but also of preparation of forged and fabricated bill for the purpose of release of contract amount from the Public Works Department (PWD).
"The active involvement of PWD officials has also been surfaced, relevant provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act have also been invoked in the FIR. The investigation is still going on and notice issued to PWD officials.
"Therefore, in view of the above discussion, this court is of the view that the alleged act of releasing money from the government exchequer by submitting bills of non existent firm is grave in nature," the judge said in the order.
PWD officials who are involved in the preset case are still being interrogated. Investigation of this case is still at a very crucial juncture, the court noted.
"Releasing the accused on bail at this stage may affect the smooth flow of investigation. Therefore, considering the facts and circumstances, gravity of the offence, I do not find any ground to release the accused/applicant on bail. Bail application is dismissed," the judge ruled.
According to an FIR lodged in May last year, Bansal and his father were working on a project of over Rs 4 crore. After receiving a payment of Rs 3 crore, they showed fake bills of Rs 1 crore for the procurement of steel from a company that was "non-existent".
Bansal was arrested on May 10 by the ACB. The court had then rejected the application of the ACB for police remand, saying Bansal, who had fainted and collapsed in the courtroom that day, was not medically fit.
Three FIRs, including one against a company run by Bansal, were registered by the ACB in this case on May 9 last year.
Three companies, including Renu Constructions (owned by the Bansals, Kamal Singh and Pawan Kumar), were named in the FIRs.
In a complaint, Rahul Sharma, the founder of Roads Anti-Corruption Organisation (RACO), had alleged that Kejriwal and PWD minister Satyendra Jain had misused their office for grant of contracts to Bansal. However, they were not named in the FIR.
RACO, an organisation which claims to monitor construction projects in the national capital, had alleged that a firm linked to Bansal was involved in financial irregularities in building a drainage system in north-west Delhi.
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