The anti-corruption bureau (ACB) on Tuesday filed cases against PWD executive engineer Satish Madhukar Chiklikar, his wife Swati, PWD section engineer Jagdish Magan Wagh and his wife Deepika in the Sarkarwada police station. Chiklikar and Wagh were remanded to judicial custody for 14 days
by a Nashik court on May 16.
It may be recalled that Chiklikar had demanded `22,000 from a complainant who was requesting for his bills which amounted to `3.87 lakh. He accepted the bribe on April 30 through Wagh, who was the section engineer in the Trimbakeshwar sub-division. Later, another bank locker belonging to Wagh was opened by the ACB in Nashik, disclosing cash and fixed deposit worth `1.13 crore, which included cash worth `98 lakh and fixed deposits worth `15 lakh. The ACB had further recovered cash worth `3.27 lakh crore, gold biscuits and ornaments. The total wealth, including cash, jewellery and landed property, seized from Chiklikar till date amounts to `14.66 lakh crore.
The ACB, after arresting the duo, had even raided Chiklikar’s official bungalow and had earlier recovered cash worth `2.96 crore and huge amounts of gold and jewellery. Both Chiklikar and Wagh’s accounts have been
frozen.The ACB had also interrogated the wives of the corrupt engineers — Swati and Deepali — for two days. Surprisingly, Swati had withdrawn her anticipatory bail application.
The ACB had appealed for an extension of their police custody, as new disclosures were made on a daily basis. Chiklikar was admitted to the hospital after he complained of high blood pressure and other issues last week.
PWD minister Chhagan Bhujbal has said that there were no rules stipulating that relatives of government officials should not start firms or take government contracts, but such firms should not work in the areas where their relatives are
posted.