Messages reading “Thank you so much sir”, “Please get it done”, and “He totally spoiled the game” exchanged between the accused in the alleged multi-crore sewage treatment plant (STP) tender scam involving former Delhi minister and AAP leader Satyendar Jain are at the centre of the investigation into the case being carried out by the Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB).
According to the ACB, the tender conditions and the scope of work were changed to increase the cost and benefit the company that won the contract, while money was routed through intermediaries allegedly linked to Jain and former Delhi Jal Board (DJB) CEO Udit Prakash Rai.
Jain, Rai and four others were arrested in connection with the case on August 18.
Raj Kumar Kurra, the owner of Euroteck Environment Private Limited, the firm which was awarded the contract, had allegedly messaged DJB’s former contractual consultant Ankit Srivastava, thanking him on February 12, 2022, for a corrigendum — a formal correction for a mistake found in a contract or notice after it has been published or released.
“…on 12.02.2022, DJB (Delhi Jal Board) had issued corrigendum No. 1, regarding scope of work having restriction of ‘Augmentation and Up-gradation shall be based on IFAS technology with fixed media only and technical specification for only fixed media shall be considered’. The same corrigendum was uploaded in Government portal at 05.02 PM,” the ACB said in its submissions before a Delhi court on Tuesday.
“…Ankit Srivastava shared the corrigendum No. 1 issued by DJB wherein the IFAS technology with Fixed media was finalised as the sole technology to Raja Kumar Kurra at 11.40 AM prior to uploaded the same on the Government portal. Rajakumar Kurra replied as ‘It is a good news’ and ‘thank you so much sir’ to Ankit Srivastava in response of his message of corrigendum,” it added.
In response to another corrigendum pertaining to specifications related to aerators to be used in the STP, Kurra allegedly wrote to co-accused Nagendra Yadav, proprietor of AN Enterprises: “Vashisth did big damage to us”, “He totally spoiled the game”, and “he has given corrigendum not even discussed once”. This corrigendum allegedly did not prove beneficial to Kurra’s firm.
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“Rajakumar Kurra has sent whatsapp messages ‘Draft corrigendum’ and ‘sir dalvado’ to Nagendra Yadav on 12.04.2022 at 08:55 AM. The said draft corrigendum is having condition criteria for Aspirator/Aerators/Mixtures which given undue benefit to M/s Euroteck,” the ACB, represented by Public Prosecutor Manish Rawat, submitted before Special Judge Dig Vinay Singh.
“…the same to same corrigendum was uploaded in DJB portal on 12.04.2022 at 06:42 PM as Annexure A of corrigendum 8 having certain mandatory specification for Aspirator/Aerators/Mixers which given undue benefits to M/s Euroteck and restricted the other technology providers…on 15.04.2022, Rajakumar Kurra has sent whatsapp messages in pdf file namely ‘Corrigendum for Qualification Criteria.doc’ and whatsapp message ‘Sir pls karvadena’ to Nagendra Yadav. The said pdf file was having condition of Qualification experience criteria of said STP tender,” the ACB added.
On April 16, the criteria sent by Kurra was allegedly incorporated in the tender and uploaded in the DJB portal as ‘corrigendum number 9’, the ACB claimed.
The ACBs probe focuses on a specific contract to upgrade Delhi’s STPs in 2022 when Jain was the Water Minister. While the companies have been linked to alleged manipulation of tenders, then DJB CEO Rai has been accused of taking bribes worth Rs 1.5 crore.
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According to the ACB, the tendering process was allegedly manipulated to restrict competition and favour Euroteck Environment (EEPL), which was eventually awarded the contract to upgrade and augment five STP each in Nilothi, Najafgarh, Narela and Kondli between 2021 and 2022. The ACB probe also claims that there was inclusion of augmentation costs in a project that was meant to involve only upgradation at some STPs.
The ACB, during its probe, also found out that the technical proposal for augmentation of Rohini STP from 15 MGD to 25 MGD was allegedly altered by Jain “who approved enhancement to 30 MGD without any technical recommendation or feasibility study”. It also claims that Rohini and Narela STPs were included in the project, while Okhla Phase V STP was excluded, which allegedly resulted in an estimated cost escalation of approximately Rs 123 crore.
Terming Jain’s decisions “arbitrary”, the ACB said they were “taken without adequate technical justification”.
One of the accused is currently in police custody, while the rest are in judicial custody. Their bail pleas are pending before the court.
Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023.
Professional Background
Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University.
Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories.
Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts.
Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials.
Recent notable articles
In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories.
1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey.
2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation.
3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police.
Signature Style
Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public.
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