Rajender Kumar manipulated contracts, tenders, allege audio recordings seized by CBI

New Delhi: In what could be an embarrassment for Aam Aadmi Party-led government, CBI has claimed that five audio recordings have been recovered from Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's Secretary Rajendra Kumar's email account during investigation,which appear to have been carrying his oral instructions to allegedly influence contracts in favour of Endeavour Systems. 

Kumar, who had initially refused to divulge his email password to the investigating officers, later provided the same, CBI sources were quoted as saying by PTI.

The sources claimed that scrutiny of his email account resulted in discovery of five audio recordings pertaining to the period of 2011-13 which carry his purported instructions to the officers handling tenders and contracts to allegedly manipulate and favour Endeavour Systems, which is also named in the FIR.

The voice samples of Kumar, a 1989-batch IAS officer of AGMUT cadre, have been taken as per legal procedures and matched forensically, the sources claimed adding that the said conversations could bring more people into scrutiny.

The CBI said that it has registered a case against Kumar and others on allegations against the officer that he abused his official position by "favouring a particular firm in the last few years in getting tenders from Delhi government departments".

Kumar has been booked under 120-B of IPC (criminal conspiracy), and 13(2), 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act (Criminal conspiracy, criminal misconduct etc) for allegedly favouring a private company in five contracts worth Rs 9.5 crore during 2007-14.

"The accused allegedly facilitated award of contracts worth Rs 9.50 crore(approx) to the said company through ICSIL and misused his official position as public servant. The accused were instrumental in award of projects to the said private company in Delhi Transco Ltd; Health and Family Welfare Department, GNCTD; Delhi Jal Board and Department of Trade and Taxes, GNCTD," CBI had said in the statement after the registration of the case.

(With Agency inputs)