Who is Deepak Gahlawat, arrested for 3-crore bribe – Read what is the fake drug racket probe that he was to ‘fix’

The CBI has arrested Haryana IPS officer Deepak Gahlawat for accepting part of a ₹3 crore bribe from an accused in the Puducherry counterfeit medicine case.
Deepak Gahlawat arrested by CBI (Image via X and AIR)

On Wednesday, 1st July, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) arrested 2012-batch Haryana cadre IPS officer Deepak Gahlawat in connection with a bribery case linked to the multi-crore counterfeit medicine racket in Puducherry. Gahlawat, who is currently serving as a Regional Director with the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), has been accused of demanding money by claiming he could use his influence within the CBI to secure relief for an accused in the case.

According to the agency, Gahlawat demanded a bribe of ₹3 crore from the main accused, N. Raja alias Valliappan alias Rajasekhar, and had already received ₹1 crore. The CBI claims the IPS officer assured Raja that he could “arrange” favourable results in the ongoing investigation through his contacts in the agency.

Court grants one-day CBI custody

After his arrest, the CBI sought five days of custodial interrogation, saying it needed to identify the CBI officials whom Gahlawat claimed he could influence and to uncover the larger conspiracy.

However, Special CBI Judge Sushant Changotra of Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court granted only one day’s custody. The court also questioned the CBI over the manner in which it had conducted the investigation.

The judge asked why investigators had not questioned Gahlawat about the identities of the CBI officers despite him joining the investigation several times earlier.

“The answers given by the investigating officer show that no real effort has been made to find out whether any CBI officer was ever approached or even identified,” the court observed, while still allowing the agency one day of police custody for further investigation.

Demand made during the meeting

According to the CBI, the demand for the bribe was made during a meeting held on 14th May, which was attended by Gahlawat, Delhi Police Inspector Pradeep Kumar Singh, Raja, Rajkumar and Prabhat Kapoor. 

The agency said that Gahlawat initially sought ₹1.5 crore as an advance payment out of the total ₹3 crore. Investigators also claimed that ₹1 crore connected to the alleged deal was recovered from Prabhat Kapoor.

The CBI further said that Gahlawat instructed Kapoor to delete chats, destroy his SIM card and install a particular mobile application in an attempt to destroy evidence. Investigators also pointed to a UPI transfer of ₹50,000 from Kapoor to Gahlawat, claiming it was linked to the case.

IPS officer denies allegations

Gahlawat denied all the allegations in court. He told the judge that he had not contacted any of his acquaintances in the CBI during the period under investigation and said no illegal money had been recovered from his accounts.

His lawyers argued that he had cooperated with the investigation on multiple occasions, surrendered his mobile phone and that all his premises had already been searched. They also claimed the ₹50,000 transaction was related to the sale of his old car to Prabhat Kapoor and had nothing to do with the bribery. The defence further told the court that Gahlawat had been undergoing treatment for depression and there was no need for custodial interrogation.

Linked to Puducherry fake medicine racket

The bribery case is connected to the massive counterfeit medicine racket uncovered in Puducherry last year, where police and the CB-CID seized large quantities of fake medicines and raw materials. Raja was arrested in December, and the investigation was later transferred to the CBI after allegations emerged that several politicians were also linked to the case.

Earlier this month, the CBI had also arrested Delhi Police Inspector Pradeep Kumar Singh and several private individuals in connection with the same bribery case. The agency said it recovered around ₹25 lakh as trap money, ₹90 lakh in cash and several incriminating documents during the investigation.

The CBI said the investigation is continuing to establish the full conspiracy and identify everyone involved in the attempt to influence the probe into the fake medicine racket.

Written by OpIndia Staff
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