New Delhi: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Tuesday booked and raided the residence of 1982 batch IAS officer Ramesh Abhishek in connection with a disproportionate assets case against him and his daughter Vaneesa Agrawal, ThePrint has learnt.
An agency source told ThePrint that the FIR against Abhishek, a Bihar cadre officer who is the former secretary at the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) and ex-chairman of the Forward Markets Commission (FMC), came on the back of a December 2023 order from the anti-corruption watchdog Lokpal.
Abhishek is known to be instrumental in several of the Narendra Modi government’s flagship policies such as the Make in India and Startup India schemes. He took over as FMC chief on 21 September, 2012; as DPIIT secretary in February, 2016; and retired in July 2019.
Currently, he’s one of the three independent directors of the fintech company Paytm Payments Bank, which is facing a probe over possible compliance issues.
ThePrint tried to reach Abhishek via phone calls and Whatsapp text. This report will be updated if and when a response is received.
The former civil servant and his daughter have been booked under sections 12 (punishment for abetment of offences), and 13 (criminal misconduct by a public servant) of the Prevention of Corruption Act and 120 B (criminal conspiracy) and 109 (offence is in pursuance of the conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), the agency source said.
In its order on 20 December, 2023, Lokpal highlighted the “doubtful transactions” that Abhishek and his daughter Vaneesa Agrawal received from companies that were dealing with the former civil servant when he was still part of the DPIIT and the FMC.
In August 2022, the anti-corruption body ordered the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to evaluate Abhishek’s property in Delhi’s Greater Kailash. He had challenged this order in the Delhi High Court, which dismissed it.
“Director, Enforcement Directorate, is directed to make enquiries in regard to the valuation of the property viz. E-72, Greater Kailash, Part-II, acquired by the public servant (respondent) and co-owners/owners of other floors. ED should also enquire whether there was any conflict of interest in terms of remuneration received by the public servant (respondent) and/or his relatives. During this enquiry, it may also be ascertained whether the public servant (respondent) was required to inform relevant authority, the cost of redevelopment of the property bought by him in GK-II and whether the appropriate authority was informed or not,” the Delhi HC order quoted Lokpal as saying.
Last January, after the ED had submitted its first inquiry report, Lokpal ordered an “open inquiry” into the allegations. In his affidavit before the anti-corruption watchdog, Abhishek reportedly admitted to having earned Rs 2.7 crore as a professional fee 15 months post-retirement.
In May 2023, a Mumbai court ordered the Economic Offence’s Wing to investigate Abhishek’s possible role in a case of investor fraud involving the National Spot Exchange Limited (NSEL). That case allegedly dates back to 2013, when he was FMC chairman.
Abhishek has challenged that court order in the Bombay High Court.
This is an updated version of this report
(Edited by Uttara Ramaswamy)
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Unless official corruption is rooted out, India simply will never get developed. What is needed are fast trials and severe sentences of the guilty. Sometimes I even feel that some punishment like caning or using the whip in Singapore may be more effective than just fines or stay in white collar jails.