CBI registers case against Ashok Gehlot, Sachin Pilot, ex union ministers' sons

NEW DELHI: CBI has taken over probe in the ambulance scam of Rajasthan in which it re-registered FIR of the state police naming former Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot, ex-Union Minister Sachin Pilot, Karthi Chidambaram, Ravi Krishna among others as accused.

CBI today carried out searches at the office of the firm Ziqitza Health Care in Jaipur and Mumbai against which a case has been registered.

FIR no. 256/2014 was registered at Ashok Nagar Police station in Jaipur after BJP government was formed last year on the complaint of Jaipur Mayor Pankaj Joshi on July 31, 2014.

At the request of Rajasthan government, the case was transferred to CBI which has now re-registered it under the Anti-Corruption Unit of the agency here.

"The FIR was registered against the then Directors of the private firm at Mumbai/Jaipur and others including public servants under section 420 (cheating), 467 (forgery), 468, 471 and 120-B of IPC on the allegations of irregularities in the award of tender in favour of the said firm by deliberately inserting technical specifications and irregularities in the implementation of the project which included excess bills claimed by said firm and paid to them," CBI spokesperson said.

The FIR registered by the state government has named Gehlot and alleged Directors of the company Pilot, Karthi (son of former Union Minister P Chidambaram), Ravi Krishna (son of former Union Minister Vayalar Ravi), Ziqitza Health Care, its Director Sweta Mangal, the then Health Minister of the state Duru Mirza and the the Director National Rural Health Mission, CBI sources said.

Pilot has said he had resigned from the company in late 2002 or early 2003 (before he became MP) when it decided to become a "for profit" company from the "non-profit" venture as he was associated with it only for social cause.

CBI has claimed that the period of the alleged crime is between 2010-13.