On 8th February, the Central Bureau of Investigation stated in a press release that the agency had apprehended three accused, including a Senior Auditor of the Office of the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (PCDA), Ministry of Defence, New Delhi, and two private individuals, including the proprietor of a private company, for demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 8 lakh to release a payment of Rs 55.96 lakh from a drone manufacturer. The payment was for a project undertaken by the complainant’s company, which supplied UAVs to the Indian Army in 2023. A total bribe of Rs 10 lakh was sought, with Rs 8 lakh as the first instalment from the complainant.
CBI apprehends three accused including Senior Auditor of the Office of Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (PCDA), New Delhi and two pvt persons including proprietor of private company for demanding and accepting bribe of Rs 8 lakh as first instalment from the complainant pic.twitter.com/Sfm8FAghdg
— Central Bureau of Investigation (India) (@CBIHeadquarters) February 8, 2025
OpIndia accessed the FIR filed in the matter. The FIR was registered on 7th February 2025 under Section 61(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and Section 7 of the Prevention of Corruption Act against two accused, including a public servant from the Office of the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (PCDA), Ministry of Defence, Defence Offices Complex, New Delhi, and a private individual who was a defence supplier. The complaint was lodged by the Senior Vice-President of the finance department of the company Raphe mPhibr, Varun Narang.
In his complaint, Narang alleged that the accused demanded Rs 10 lakh from the complainant, who is also a defence supplier, for his already cleared bills. The complainant further alleged that he was threatened that the payment would be obstructed if the bribe was not paid.
The FIR mentioned that an invoice of Rs 55.96 lakh had already been cleared by the ministry and credited to the complainant’s account. The accused then allegedly threatened the complainant, stating that if he wanted subsequent invoices cleared, he would have to pay the bribe.
Furthermore, the complainant stated that the accused public servant agreed to accept Rs 8 lakh as the first instalment of the bribe. The amount was supposed to be paid to the private individual, the second accused in the case.
Upon receiving the complaint, the CBI laid a trap and caught the accused employee of the defence supplier red-handed while demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 8 lakh from the complainant. Later, the owner of the private defence supplier was also apprehended by the agency.
During the investigation, the identity of the accused public servant was revealed as a Senior Auditor at the Office of the Principal Controller of Defence Accounts (PCDA), Ministry of Defence, Defence Offices Complex, New Delhi, after which he was also apprehended by the agency.
In a statement, a spokesperson for the CBI said, “The CBI registered a case against two accused – Senior Auditor Deep Narayan Yadav and defence supplier Akash Kapoor – over allegations that they demanded Rs 10 lakh from the complainant for his already cleared bills and threatened to obstruct the payment of further bills.”
The spokesperson added, “The CBI laid a trap and caught an employee of the accused defence supplier red-handed while demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 8 lakh from the complainant as the first instalment. Later, Kapoor, who is the owner of Akash Polytechnic Pvt Ltd, was also apprehended.”
Further investigation in the matter is underway.
