CBI arrests NHAI officials, Ashoka Buildcon executives in Rs 5 lakh bribery

Busting a major corruption racket at the Patna regional office of the National Highways Authority of India, the CBI on Friday arrested four persons, including a chief general manager and a deputy general manager, in a Rs 5 lakh bribery case, officials said.

Chief General Manager Sadre Alam and DGM Prabhanshu Shekhar posted at the NHAI regional office were arrested by the CBI for allegedly receiving a bribe of Rs 5 lakh from executives of the Nashik-based Ashoka Buildcon Limited -- Amit Kumar Gupta and Mukul Kumar -- they said.

The arrests were followed by searches at eight locations, including the residences of the accused officials and the private executives and offices of the company.

During the searches, the CBI recovered Rs 70 lakh in cash, including the bribe amount, and property documents from the residential premises of Alam. Gold jewellery and biscuits worth Rs 80 lakh and Rs 6 lakh in cash were recovered from Shekhar's premises, they said. It is alleged that Alam and Shekhar were seeking the bribe from officials of Ashoka Buildcon in exchange for clearing inflated bills, manipulation of measurement books, etc.