The Central Bureau of Investigation on Monday arrested Special Director, Rakesh Asthana’s aide and Deputy Superintendent of Police Devender Kumar in connection with the Moin Qureshi case.
Kumar was arrested on charges of falsifying records. He has been accused of forging statement against CBI chief Alok Verma.
Meanwhile, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday summoned CBI chief Alok Verma and deputy Rakesh Asthana amid the ongoing fight between the top officials.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) announced on Sunday its decision to register a case against Rakesh Asthana.
Read | Explained: The case against CBI Special Director Rakesh Asthana
The charge against Asthana is that he accepted a bribe to settle a case connected to meat exporter Moin Qureshi, who is facing multiple cases of money laundering and corruption.
Interestingly, before being named in the alleged case of bribery, Asthana had filed a complaint against CBI Director Alok Verma accusing him of corruption and irregularities in 10 cases.
One of the case pertained to Sathish Sana, a businessman facing probe in a corruption case involving meat exporter Moin Qureshi in which Asthana had alleged on August 24 that Sana paid Rs 2 crore to Verma to get relief in the case.
However, the probe agency Sunday tried to defend Alok Verma, saying the allegations are “false and malicious”.
There are a total of four accused in the case.
Asthana and others face charges under section 120B of the Indian Penal Code and section 7, and 13(2) read with 13(1)(d) of Prevention of Corruption Act 1988 and section 7A of Prevention of Corruption Act (as amended in 2018).
The case has been entrusted to Ajay Kumar Bassi, DSCP, CBI, New Delhi.
In an unprecedented operation, the CBI registered an FIR against Asthana and his Deputy Superintendent of Police Devender Kumar, and two alleged middlemen Somesh Prasad and Manoj Prasad on the basis of a statement from Sana that bribe was paid to the middlemen to get relief in repeated questioning by the Asthana’s Special Investigation Unit.
(With agency inputs)