The Central Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday registered a First Information Report against the Chairman and Managing Director of Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML), Bengaluru, Mr V.R.S. Natarajan, and the director of Astral Consultants, Coimbatore, Mr C.S. Srivatsan for alleged irregularities in awarding contract for an Enterprises Resource Planning Project (ERP), due to which the BEML incurred huge amount of losses.
Mr Natarajan – accused number one in the FIR along with accused number two Mr. Srivatsan – has been charged with criminal conspiracy, cheating, corruption and misuse of office under Sections U/s 120-B r/w 420 IPC and Sec.13 (2) r/w 13(1)(d) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. Mr Natarajan was grilled by the CBI two days ago in the controversial Tatra truck deal. The CBI also raided the residential and official premises of Mr Natarajan and Mr Srivatsan in Bengaluru and Coimbatore and reportedly seized some incriminating documents related to tenders for the ERP contract that BEML had awarded between 2004 and 2009. Simultaneous searches were also conducted at the premises of some of the officials of Astral Consultants. This is the second CBI search on the BEML since March 30.
The CBI’s Bengaluru unit recently got sanction of the Defence Ministry to probe BEML chief's role in tendering process for hiring Coimbatore-based Astral Consultants for which preliminary inquiry (PE) had been registered. The CBI unit is probing several complaints against the BEML officials, sources added.
Talking to reporters in New Delhi, CBI Spokesperson Dharini Mishra said, “It is alleged that the accused persons were parties to a criminal conspiracy entered amongst themselves at Bengaluru and other places during 2004-09 to cheat BEML in the matter of award of different works relating to the implementation of ERP project in the PSU. This caused wrongful gain to others”.