Pune: A special CBI court remanded Anil Kumar B R, executive director of Munitions India Limited, a public sector defence manufacturing company under Ministry of Defence, his brother Harshavardhan B R, and businessman Ashish Kansal, the alleged bribe-giver, in police custody till Oct 19 in a multi-crore rupee bribery case.
The CBI arrested Kansal, the alleged bribe-giver, in Delhi on Oct 13. They also contended that Kansal had been arrested without being served a notice under Section 35(3) of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita. The court upheld the arrests and remanded the accused in police custody till Oct 19.
The roles of other govt employees and the co-accused angadia also needed to be investigated, they said. Inspector Avinash Gupta, the investigating officer, and special public prosecutor Abhayraj Arikar sought police custody of the accused on these grounds. Advocates A B Bhujbal and Mayur Mali represented the accused. The defence argued that the alleged bribe money and documents had already been seized and that police custody was not required. After hearing both sides, special judge R R Mendhe observed that the allegations against the accused were serious and related to the country’s defence establishment.
He was brought to Pune after the agency obtained a transit warrant from the Rouse Avenue court in Delhi and produced him before the court here.
The CBI’s investigating officers told the court that they would also probe the role of other govt employees and an angadia, a traditional courier service provider, who is a co-accused in the case.