In a significant development, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) arrested five former officials of the Chhattisgarh Medical Services Corporation Limited (CGMSCL) in connection with an alleged scam involving irregularities in the purchase of medical equipment and reagent chemicals.
The arrested individuals have been identified as Basant Kumar Kaushik, Chirod Rautia, Kamalkant Patanwar, Dr. Anil Parsai, and Deepak Kumar Bandhe. These individuals were previously posted in key positions within CGMSCL, including as General Manager, Deputy Manager, and Biomedical Engineers.
The ACB and EOW had initiated a probe after identifying a scam involving CGMSCL and Health Services Directorate officials. The case also implicated four firms, including Mokshit Corporation (Durg), CB Corporation (Durg), Records and Medicare System HSIIDC (Panchkula, Haryana), and Shri Sharda Industries (Raipur). The alleged scam caused a loss of crores of rupees to the government exchequer.
Earlier, Shashank Chopra, Director of Mokshit Corporation, was arrested on January 29, following the investigation. The probe revealed that CGMSCL had made extensive purchases of medical equipment and reagents between January 2022 and October 2023, in collusion with Mokshit Corporation and a fake company. One such purchase included EDTA tubes, which were bought at a price of Rs 2,352 per unit from Mokshit Corporation, while other institutions procured the same tubes for a maximum of Rs 8.50 per unit. Additionally, CBC machines, which are typically priced at Rs 5 lakh, were purchased by CGMSCL for Rs 17 lakh each.
The recent arrests were made under serious charges, including criminal breach of trust (section 409), criminal conspiracy (section 120(B)) of the Indian Penal Code, and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The five accused have been produced before the special ACB and EOW court, where they were granted seven-day custody remand until March 28.
