CBI probe into ARSS fraud Subash Argawal owned ARSS Infrastructure Projects Ltd has come under the CBI scanner following the recent Income Tax (IT) raids on the firm’s offices in Orissa and other cities that is expected to unmask Agrawal’s nexus with unscrupulous officials of railways and National Highway Authority of India (NHAI). The IT department has unearthed a surprising figure of Rs 68 crore tax fraud by ARSS Infrastructures which in itself has risen from a small-time contracting firm to that of a big business conglomerate. “The preliminary investigation is already on. On the basis of the findings, the investigating agency would register a formal case against the company,” a CBI source told powercorridor.in. The CBI probe against ARSS is pertaining to tax fraud and poor quality of work causing huge loss to the railways and the NHAI. Laying down additional railway track between Bhubaneswar and Khurda and the Khurda-Bolangir doubling work are among the biggest work orders being currently executed by ARSS. This apart, the company is also engaged in the much delayed four-laning project of the NHAI between Khallikote and Gopalpur junction in the NH 5 corridor. Agrawal was a small- time railway contractor supplying boulders for railway tracks sometime roughly a decade ago. He worked under Khurda Road and Kharagpur divisions with South Eastern Railway zone prior to formal creation of East Coast Railway. His used his contacts in the railways in getting tenders for laying rail tracks and maintenance work. Big money exchanged hands. Hotel Garden Inn, now Hotel Hindustan International, used to be the entertainment hub for senior officials of the South Eastern Railway (SER) while financial deals took place in his Nayapalli residence in Bhubaneswar. In the year 2000, criminals fired at Agrawal’s residence in Nayapalli. This exposed his nexus with Jamshedpur based dreaded gangster Pintoo and Kharagpur based supari killer Rama Rao. In 2002, he landed in trouble with the CBI investigating into his transactions. Low/bad quality work and overstated money bills were unearthed. Following this, he was banned for a few years from the railways. Railway business out of hands, Agrawal floated an ugly conglomerate named ARSS Infrastructures. He entered into infrastructure business by garnering tenders regarding highway works. Subsequently, Agrawal managed to influence the railways in getting new rail track laying and expansion works. ARSS Infrastctures Ltd is today a big business house with assets worth more than Rs 2000 crores and annual turnover of roughly Rs 500 crores. In October 2010, ARSS was raided by income tax department which unearthed the huge tax evasion by forging records. Some unscrupulous IT officials are also in handy with Agrawal, said the sources. Besides the operations in Orissa, activities of ARSS are also being investigated upon by CBI’s Kolkata and New Delhi branches. By Prakash Rao [email protected] powercorridor.in/archivedetail.php?id=27
Posted on: Fri, 21 Jun 2013 18:24:41 +0000
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