The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has arrested four individuals, including a principal scientist and a controller of stores and purchase from the CSIR-North East Institute of Science and Technology (NEIST) in Assam’s Jorhat, following allegations of corruption connected to the procurement of a spectrophotometer and its software.
The arrested individuals are principal scientist Prasenjit Manna, controller of stores and purchase Praveer Mohan Verma, Kangkan Kashyap, the director of KXK Technologies Private Limited, and his brother Angkan Borpujari, a Jorhat resident. They face accusations related to the awarding of a contract and the processing of a bill for the equipment supply.
The investigation has expanded to include other public servants, with three additional officials from CSIR-NEIST under scrutiny: Abhay Sakhare, the finance and accounts officer; Rama Shankar Sharma, the controller of finance and accounts; and Jatin Kalita, a senior principal scientist at the Centre for Infectious Disease.
According to the CBI, the accused were involved in illicit activities aimed at gaining undue advantages from private parties in exchange for favoring them in contract and procurement matters. It is reported that the former controller of finance and accounts contacted CSIR headquarters to discuss an allocation of approximately ₹7 crore for expenses incurred by NEIST for the equipment purchase.
The CBI noted that those involved had allegedly discussed a bribe division of ₹7 lakh for the controller of stores and purchase and ₹2 lakh for the finance and accounts officer. Additionally, a senior principal scientist allegedly indicated willingness to facilitate future contracts for the company in return for a bribe.
The company director, Kangkan Kashyap, reportedly instructed his brother to transfer ₹9 lakh into a consultancy firm’s account, withdraw ₹8 lakh in cash, give ₹7 lakh as a bribe to the controller of stores and purchase, and retain the remainder. Acting on a tip-off, the CBI executed a trap and arrested the two public servants as they received ₹7 lakh on Friday, while the director was apprehended in Guwahati the following day.
Officials carried out searches across 18 locations in Assam, Jharkhand, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, and Delhi as part of the investigation.
