The CBI on Thursday carried out a nationwide raid at as many as 16 locations in Jharkhand, Bihar, and Delhi in the 34th national games scam.
“In Jharkhand raids were carried out in Ranchi, Dhanbad, Bokaro, Godda, and Dumka. Thus, a total of 16 locations were raided whereas in Bihar two locations in Patna and another two locations in Delhi have been raided. In Ranchi, the house of former HRD minister Bandhu Tirkey was raided whereas in Delhi the premises of RK Anand were raided,” said a senior CBI official.
The CBI said that raids were carried out against 13 named accused in the case which the CBI is investigating on the order of Jharkhand Bandhu Tirkey, the working president of the Congress was minister of sports and youth affairs when the preparations for the national game were going on. He was in Delhi when the raid was started. The Congress criticized the raid and said that it was done with a political motive.
The CBI said that certain incriminating documents have been recovered during the raid. It further said that it registered a case against Bandhu Tirkey, former MP and the then Working Chairman of National Games Organizing Committee RK Anand, treasurer, and others including the then Director (Sports), Govt. of Jharkhand; the then Organising Secretary, National Games Organizing Committee; the then Treasurer, Jharkhand Olympic Association.
The CBI lodged two FIRs at the Anti-Corruption Unit of the CBI in Ranchi related to the 34th National Games scam. In the first case RC0242022A0001, the FIR was lodged against unknown public servants and private persons. The FIR was lodged under sections 120 (B), 420 of IPC, and sections 13 (2) and 13 (1) (D) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The investigation has been assigned to Surendra Depawat, who is posted as DSP at the anti-corruption branch of the CBI at Patna in Bihar. Sources in the CBI said that this FIR is related to a scam in the construction of the sports infrastructure during the national game.
The second FIR RC0242022A0002 has been lodged against R. K. Anand who was (Working Chairman of 34" National Games Organising Committee cum-President, Jharkhand Olympic Association, S.M. Hashmi, Organising Secretary, 34th National Games Organising Committee-cum-Secretary General, Jharkhand Olympic Association and Madhukant Pathak, treasurer, 34th National Games Organising Committee cum-Treasurer, Jharkhand Olympic Association. Investigation of this case has been assigned to Shri Narayan, inspector of CBI posted at the anti-corruption branch in Patna.
Bholanath Singh had lodged the first FIR. He alleged that a wide level of corruption was done in organizing the national games. On this basis the Vigilance Bureau lodged an FIR 49/2010 and filed two charge sheets. It claimed that Rs 28.38 crore were embezzled.
On April 11, The Jharkhand High Court directed the CBI to investigate the national games scam. It also asked the CBI to investigate the role of police officials and bureaucrats.
The double bench of Chief Justice Dr. Ravi Ranjan and Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad ordered this after hearing a bunch of PIL filed by Sushil Kumar Singh Mantu, Surya Singh Besra of Jharkhand Against Corruption, and Pankaj Yadav. The court said that the Anti-Corruption Bureau of Jharkhand was not in a position to investigate this case as high-profile persons are involved. The 34th National Games was held from 12 February to 26 February in 2011. But it was originally scheduled for 2007.