Guwahati: The Assam chief minister's special vigilance cell (CMSCV) on Tuesday arrested IAS officer Chohan Doley in a Rs 121-crore scam.
Doley, currently posted as secretary in the panchayat and rural development department, was produced before the court of special judge, Assam, A. Bhattacharyya, who remanded him in police custody for 10 days.
The alleged scam took place in the Assam Building and Other Construction Workers' Welfare Board between 2013 and 2016 when Doley was the labour commissioner and member secretary of the board.
An official source said Doley was arrested from the Down Town Hospital here this afternoon, where he was admitted with chest pain yesterday.
The source said he was arrested today after doctors declared him medically fit.
The CMSCV had registered this case (number 09/2017) on November 7 under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 406 (criminal breach of trust), 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using a forged document as genuine), 420 (cheating) of the IPC and Section 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.
In the FIR, the vigilance cell also named then chairman of the board Gautam Baruwa, administrative officer of the board N.N. Choudhury and Priyanshu Bairagi, proprietor of Purbashree Printing House located at Patarkuchi here as accused.
The CMSVC had arrested Bairagi on November 8 and he was sent to police custody for seven days.
"Bairagi was produced in the special court following expiry of his police remand today and he was sent to judicial custody for two weeks," the source said.
The scam is related to awarding contracts to Bairagi's firm for printing leaflets, folders and other such materials by the board.
"The CMSVC suspects involvement of some officials of Sarba Siksha Abhiyan Mission, Assam, also in the scam and it is under investigation. Thorough custodial interrogation of Doley is expected to throw more light into the scam," the source said.
According to the vigilance cell, the accused officers had entered into a criminal conspiracy with Bairagi and awarded contracts to Purbashree Printing House at inflated rates by flouting the laid-down rules and procedures, thereby causing huge losses to the state government and corresponding illegal gain for themselves.
The source said that the contracts were awarded to Bairagi's printing house despite it lacking the required infrastructure to execute such contracts.
Doley was also arrested by police on February 16, 2015, after two minor girls, allegedly working as domestic helps, escaped from his residence at Borbari here and one of them levelled charges of sexual exploitation against him.
