Trouble brews for IAS Niraj K Pawan after Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) filed chargesheet against five accused including him in National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) scam involving bribery of Rs 1.5 crore against allegedly clearing fake bills of Rs 7 crore.
Pawan, a 2003 batch IAS officer is currently serving as Director General, Indira Gandhi Panchayatiraj Sansthan.
The chargesheet was submitted before the ACB Court, Jaipur, in FIR No. 115/2016. The other accused are Joji Varghese, Deepa Gupta, Ajit Soni and Sunil Rathore.
However, the investigation against another accused, Surendra Singh, remains pending under Section 173(8) of the CrPC, which permits further investigation even after submission of a police report.
What is the case?
The case dates back to May 2016 when Pawan was serving as Additional Mission Director of the National Rural Health Mission (NHM/NRHM). The ACB arrested him over allegations of taking a massive bribe and manipulating tenders during his tenure.
He was accused of running a corrupt nexus with middlemen and lower-level officials to award work orders and procurement contracts in exchange for heavy commissions. He has also been accused of hiring his relatives on contractual positions and also hiring officials on district level without following the proper procedure.
After spending roughly seven months in custody and being denied bail in July 2016, he was finally granted bail in January 2017.
However, he remained on APO for a quite long period before getting posting as Special Secretary Administrative Reforms in April 2018.
His brush with controversies, however continued in 2021 when his office was sealed by ACB on allegation of corruption when he was serving as Chairman, Rajasthan Skill and Livelihood Development Corporation. Though he was not arrested but two of his subordinates were arrested for accepting a bribe of ₹5 lakh.
What will happen next?
Since ACB has filed chargesheet, the legal process will move from investigative stage to judicial trial. The ACB judge will review the chargesheet and supporting evidence before finally registering criminal case.
After the arrest of senior IAS officer Subodh Agarwal post retirement, there is fear among official linked with corruption. Agarwal who has been made accused by ACB in Jal Jeevan Mission Scheme scam, has been languishing in jail for more than 4 months. The court has been rejecting bail – much to the misery of Agarwal, who is as once the senior most bureaucrat in the state.
Alok Mathur is a law graduate. Journalism is his first love which he now pursues in the latter half of his career. Controversies and crime are the right triggers for him.
