Debangana Ray
Published on June 27, 2022 at 17:32 IST
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is investigating the Rs. 1500 crore Gomti Riverfront Scam, has sought the State Government’s opinion on a probe into the role of then senior IAS officers Alok Ranjan and Deepak Singhal.
While Alok Ranjan was the UP Chief secretary, Singhal was posted as the principal secretary, irrigation and also went on to become the chief secretary.
Sources in the CBI said the agency has approached the state government for its opinion on investigating the role of the two IAS officers which has not been probed as yet.
However, the attempts of the CBI to reach out to the additional chief secretary, appointment and personnel, proved futile.
The investigation was started by the CBI in 2017 following the recommendations of the Yogi Adityanath government.
In November 2017, the case was taken over by the CBI which filed an FIR against eight engineers of the irrigation department of different ranks in relation to the Gomti River Channelization Project and Gomti River Front Development Project.
A chargesheet was filed by the CBI against senior assistant Raj Kumar Yadav, two directors of a private firm associated with the project, Himanshu Gupta and Kavish Gupta and senior advisor Badri Shrestha.
The project involved construction of a rubber dam to maintain its water level, a stadium, an amphitheatre for 2000 people, cycle and jogging tracks, a play area for children and a musical fountain.
ED had also filed a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in March 2018 in connection with corruption in the Gomti Riverfront Development Project.