PATNA: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), Patna, has registered a formal case against a Senior Section Engineer of the East Central Railway and a private contracting firm for allegedly causing a loss of over ₹42 lakh to the railway exchequer. The FIR follows an extensive preliminary investigation into a multi-crore outsourcing contract where bills were reportedly inflated and railway resources were misused.
The Accused and Charges
The FIR, registered on January 12, 2026, names the following primary accused:
- Nirmal Kumar: Senior Section Engineer (SSE), Carriage & Wagon (C&W) Mechanical, Narayanpur Anant (NRPA) Depot, Sonpur Division.
- M/s Krishna Ram: A firm based in Ramgarh, Jharkhand, represented by its partner, Krishna Ram.
- Unknown Others: Other public servants and private individuals suspected of involvement in the conspiracy.
The accused have been booked under sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended in 2018), including:
- Section 120B: Criminal Conspiracy.
- Section 420: Cheating.
- Sections 468 & 471: Forgery for the purpose of cheating and using forged documents as genuine.
- Section 409: Criminal breach of trust by a public servant.
- Section 13(1)(a) r/w 13(2): Criminal misconduct by a public servant.
Details of the Alleged Scam
The case revolves around a contract for outsourcing various maintenance activities for goods trains—including welding, door repairs, and component replacements—at the Narayanpur Anant and Garhara freight depots. The contract was awarded to M/s Krishna Ram for an estimated value of ₹3,27,60,592.52.
According to the CBI investigation:
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- Inflated Billing: Between November 2023 and January 2025, the contractor claimed bills totaling ₹98,25,454. The CBI alleges that Nirmal Kumar conspired with the firm to allow these inflated bills, which exceeded the actual work performed, based on fraudulent entries in official registers.
- Wrongful Loss: This activity resulted in a wrongful loss to the Railways estimated at approximately ₹42,32,392.
- Misuse of Machinery: The contractor allegedly used Railway-owned machinery for the work, which was in direct violation of the contract agreement.
- Lack of Penalties: Despite clear shortcomings in the execution of the work, the SSE allegedly failed to impose mandatory penalties on the contractor as per the agreement.
Investigation Background
The fraud came to light following a Joint Surprise Check conducted on April 28, 2025, at the Narayanpur Anant Depot. A subsequent preliminary enquiry led by Sub-Inspector Siya Ram Meena uncovered systemic shortcomings and evidence of criminal misconduct.
The current investigation has been entrusted to Inspector Sanjeeb Kumar of the CBI ACB, Patna. The FIR was authorized by Pawan Kumar Srivastava, Additional Superintendent of Police, CBI ACB, Patna. Copies of the report have been forwarded to the Special Judge, CBI-I, Patna, and the Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) of East Central Railway for further action.
