CBI court frames charges against couple CBI court frames charges against couple

A special CBI court in Chandigarh today framed charges against a couple in a disproportionate assets case. Special CBI Judge Vimal Kumar has asked the CBI to produce the evidence it has against the couple.

Rajesh Chadha, one of the accused, who worked as an assistant engineer for the UT and his wife Manju Chadha, co accused, were chargesheeted today after the CBI submitted a report claiming that the documents that had been seized from the residence of the accused in 2009 had been 'misplaced'.

On August 28, the CBI had submitted a report in which it had concluded that the documents containing details of Chadha's investments had been misplaced by inspector RS Gunjiyal in the process of handing over charge on his transfer. CBI had denied charges of malafide.

The matter came to light in 2009 when a contractor filed a complaint with the CBI alleging that Chadha had taken a bribe of Rs 70,000 to clear his pending bills of Rs 1.90 lakh. In January, Chadha was convicted on the basis of this case and sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for two-and-a-half years. Following a raid that was conducted at his residence soon after, a case of disproportionate assets was filed against him.

According to the prosecution, Chadha, who is presently out on bail, possessed assets worth over Rs 98 lakhs in the form of Kisan Vikas Patras and fixed deposits in the name of his wife Manju Chadha and his son Akshay Chadha. The assets were found to be disproportionate to Chadha's income which he had not reported to his office.

The prosecution further said, Manju, who is working as a senior assistant in the Punjab Secretariat, Chandigarh, allowed her husband to use her name to prepare investment documents.

The court ordered that since Chadha failed to intimate his department or any legal authority regarding his assets and his explanation about the misplaced documents was "unsatisfactory", charges should be framed against him and his wife.

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