CBI searches ex-finance secy Arvind Mayaram’s premises, books him for graft

Mayaram, a 1978-batch retired IAS officer, is currently principal economic advisor to Rajasthan Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot. Last month, he had joined Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra during its Rajasthan leg.

The Indian Express had reported in September 2017 that the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) had sent a showcause notice to Mayaram seeking his explanation on how extensions were given to De La Rue, the British firm, for the supply of colour shift security thread.

The complaint to the CBI was filed by Raj Kumar, joint secretary and chief vigilance officer (Department of Economic Affairs), Ministry of Finance, on February 14, 2017, and a preliminary enquiry was initiated.

The case was registered on January 10 this year.

In his complaint which is now a part of the FIR, Sub-Inspector Aman Rana said the preliminary enquiry revealed that the central government had entered into an agreement with De La Rue to supply colour shift security thread for Indian bank notes in 2004, for a period of five years, and the contract was extended four times, till December 31, 2015.

“Enquiry further revealed that the then Finance Ministry on July 17, 2004, authorised RBI for entering into exclusivity agreement with the suppliers of exclusive security features on behalf of the government. A sub-committee headed by one P K Biswas, Executive Director of RBI, was constituted to go through all aspects of exclusivity of three security features firmed up for Indian bank note papers and also to go into the details of price,” said the complaint.

“Enquiry has also revealed that exclusivity agreement was signed by RBI with a UK-based company on September 4, 2004 and it was stated in Para 2 of the preamble on Page 2 of the agreement that ‘M/s De La Rue has developed an exclusive India specific green to blue colour shift clear text MRT machine readable security thread for use in Indian bank note paper and for which M/s De La Rue International Ltd holds exclusive manufacturing rights’,” it said.

Enquiries revealed that De La Rue made false claims of holding the patent, and it did not have the patent for the colour shift thread at the time of presentation in 2002 and selection in 2004, it said. “Enquiry has also revealed that M/s De La Rue International Ltd applied for patent in India in the name of ‘a method of manufacturing a substrate’ having colour shift effect only on June 28, 2004. Date of publication of this patent was March 13, 2009 and the date of grant of patent was June 17, 2011,” said the FIR.

According to the FIR, the enquiry revealed that the exclusivity agreement was signed by Biswas, without verification of patent claim, and the contract agreement did not have any termination clause. “Enquiry has also revealed that both RBI and Security Printing and Minting Corporation of India on April 17, 2006 and September 20, 2007 respectively submitted their reports regarding non-possession of patent by a UK-based company for their colour shift thread, but Mayaram never apprised the same to the Finance Minister,” the FIR said.

“Enquiry also revealed that despite non-possession of patent by the company, the contract of the company was extended from time to time till December 31, 2012. The matter was brought to the notice of Mayaram on May 10, 2013, that the contract agreement of the company had expired on December 31, 2012 and extension cannot be granted legally. On June 26, 2013, he approved another three years extension of an expired contract and overruled that fact that extension cannot be granted without obtaining the mandatory security clearance from the Ministry of Home Affairs. He did not take approval from the Finance Minister for this instance, whereas three previous extensions were approved by the Finance Minister,” the FIR said.

“Enquiry has also revealed that Anil Raghbeer, signatory of contract agreement from De La Rue, has received Rs 8.2 crore from offshore entities apart from the remuneration paid by De La Rue in 2011,” the complainant alleged.

Meanwhile, senior Congress leader Jairam Ramesh tweeted: “A former RBI Governor walks in Bharat Jodo Yatra, BJP attacks him. A retired Army General does – he’s maligned. Now a former finance secretary who joined is booked by the CBI. Modi’s FDI policy — Fear, Defamation and Intimidation — is at work here. This is the mindset of a coward. But BJY will roll on.”