Patna, Feb. 25: Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) sleuths today raided six places in the state capital and Muzaffarpur in connection with the alleged siphoning of National Rural Health Mission (NRHM) funds.

Though CBI joint director (Lucknow) Javeed Ahmad confirmed only one raid in Patna, sources said search operations were conducted in six places.

Ahmad told The Telegraph that the officials conducted a raid here, but refused to divulge the name of the person whose residential premises were searched by the sleuths. A source said the CBI officials raided the residence of a retired chief medical officer of Uttar Pradesh (UP), Dr Vibhuti Prasad, in Patna. The source added that he was at present staying in the Ara Garden area.

The investigating agency was tipped off about huge investments in business, including real estate, in Bihar by some people, who had made profits from the financial embezzlement.

The source said some suppliers and contractors of UP had close relations with a number of Bihar-based medical officials and property dealers, who played “an important role” in investing in Patna and Muzaffarpur. “We have nothing to do with today’s raid. We have only provided assistance to our Delhi and UP counterparts in carrying out the searches,” said a CBI officer posted in the agency’s Patna office. He did not reveal the name of the persons and the locations where raids were conducted.

Today’s raids were an extension of searches conducted by the investigating agency at various places in UP yesterday. About 22 business firms and over a dozen government officials have been named accused in the four FIRs lodged by the agency in connection with siphoning of Rs 22 crore from NRHM.