CBI begins with father, son and friends

CBI begins with father, son and friends
EXPRESS NEWS SERVICE

NEW DELHI, APRIL 1: The CBI today picked up Sidharth Verma, son of B.P. Verma, former chairman of Central Board for Excise and Customs (CBEC), and his business associate Rohit Jain for questioning, agency sources said here today.

Sources said CBI sleuths during the probe into the case of disproportionate assets of B.P. Verma who has been put on ``compulsary wait'' raided his 4-C Hudco Palace Andrews Ganj Extention house in New Delhi. Searches were also done in other places from where jewellery worth Rs 24 lakh, UTI and LIC fixed deposits amounting to Rs 24 lakh, Rs 1.4 lakh in cash, $1500, Rs 7.6 lakh in a savings account allegedly belonging to Verma, were recovered.

The questioning of B.P. Verma and his son Sidharth Verma at the CBI headquarters today revealed that he had reportedly invested Rs 20 lakh in private companies. CBI officials have come across evidence of more investments in other companies.

Sidharth Verma has been allegedly running three-four companies which were fronts for his father's ``illegal'' transactions. B.P. Verma had allegedly invested Rs 20 lakh in these companies. The officials are learnt to have come across evidence that there were four companies in the name of Sidharth including Jubilee Investment Ltd and Jubilee Medicare.

In different seizures in connection with allegations of B.P. Verma's undue favours to Chennai-based A.K. Enterprises, the officials claim to have found some benami investment. The officials said they recovered 10 blank cheques from the premises of Verma, which he says was given by his son andson-in-law, sources said. Investigations are being made to ascertain whether they have been given to them by private companies.

Sources said analysis of documents recovered has revealed inconsistencies in transactions of junk garments. The CBI is said to have seized some documents which suggest there was over invoicing of junk garment. The 18 per cent incentives of the government for bringing in foreign currency arising out of exports were also availed.

Sources said an export consignment which was dispatched by Chennai-based comany owned by Kiran Kumar Phoolchand, one of the accused had been seized by the Chennai custom officials there. It contained rags instead of garments.

The officials said some evidence also suggest that Verma used to get wet postings for his officers and subsequently managed funds through them. Sources said possibility of more raids and custom officials being questioned cannot be ruled out. Senior CBI officials held a meeting to discuss the further line of action into the case on Monday, sources added.

The CBI have registered an FIR against B.P. Verma, his son Sidharth Verma, Chennai-based middleman K. Vijay Pratap and the owner of A.K. Enterprises, the company in question allegedly favoured by the chairman.

In the Olga Kozireva case, the other sensational case being investigated by the CBI, the officials raided places at Delhi, Ernakulam, Sonepat, Rohtak, Mumbai and Kolkata.