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Keywords: ICCR, Indian Foreign Service

New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has booked a retired and serving officer of the Indian Foreign Service (IFS) for alleged criminal conspiracy, cheating and abuse of official position—shocking charges against officials of the elite service.

Rakesh Kumar, a retired officer of 1971 IFS batch, and Madhup Mohta, an officer of the 1985 batch, have been charged with committing financial irregularities during their tenure with the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR).

The CBI has filed three FIRs against them before a special court in New Delhi. The CBI alleges Kumar and Mohta, during their tenure as director general and deputy director general in the ICCR, entered into a criminal conspiracy while awarding tenders for setting up the council’s website, preparing an interactive CD-ROM on India and audio-video material on the Hindi language for Rs 34 lakh in November 2004.

The CBI alleged that the two officers awarded the contract for the website to M/S Learning Links though the company didn’t have any experience and was the highest bidder in the tendering procedure.

The CBI alleges that Mohta, who is currently posted at the Indian High Commission at London, and Kumar gave tenders arbitrarily without following proper procedures.

Mohta and Kumar have also been accused of conspiring with some other firms in awarding tenders to prepare promotional audio-video clips for websites on theatres of India and on folk and classical dances in March 2005 for Rs 18 lakh.

The CBI alleged that the contract was awarded to M/s Anju Visual and none of the quotations were found to be in a sealed envelope, as is the practice. During investigations, CBI questioned other companies whose bids had been submitted and it was found that they had never applied for the tender, the CBI sources said.

The third case related to making of a documentary film for which tenders were issued in March 2005. The total amount involved was Rs 30 lakh for making documentary films on folk theaters of South, West and Central India.

The CBI alleged that Kumar and Mohta allegedly conspired with some companies and the contract was given to Bangalore-based Cinermatrix and Mumbai-based Kalakriti and S K Production.

The investigating agency alleged that the two officers did not issue any tenders thus violating the basic rule amounting to abuse of their official position for pecuniary advantage to a particular private firm.