JAIPUR: In a significant development on the anti-corruption front, the Rajasthan government has finally cleared prosecution against 24 government officials who were caught red-handed while accepting bribes.
Stuck for years despite the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) completing its investigations, these cases will now proceed to court.
The government has begun seeking regular updates on pending cases involving gazetted officers. Among the 24 officials against whom the government has granted prosecution approval is IAS officer Nirmala Meena, who was implicated in connection with the 2017 wheat scam. Though Meena was charge-sheeted by the ACB in 2018, successive governments failed to act on the file. With the latest approval, the matter has now been moved to court.
Prosecution has also been approved against suspended RPSC member Babulal Katara, who was arrested in the 2022 Senior Teacher Recruitment exam paper leak. The SOG submitted its investigation file to the government, which accepted its findings and granted approval on 10 June. The file is now ready for presentation in court.
In another high-profile case, the state government has also allowed legal action against former Dausa SDM Pushkar Mittal and Bandikui SDM Pinky Meena, who were arrested in 2021 for allegedly accepting Rs 5 lakh each during the construction of the Delhi–Mumbai Expressway. That same year, the ACB exposed a bribery network linked to the expressway project in Dausa, arresting both SDMs along with then Dausa SP Manish Agarwal.
While the bureau filed chargesheets promptly, proceedings were delayed due to the lack of mandatory government sanction. Although prosecution approval for Agarwal came in January 2024, the files for Mittal and Meena remained pending.
On 1 June, the Chief Minister gave the go-ahead, upholding the ACB’s investigation. The two SDMs remain under suspension since their arrests, whereas Agarwal has returned to service.
The list also includes RPS officer Virendra Kumar, accused in a counterfeit ghee case. While the Police Headquarters did not sanction prosecution against three other police inspectors involved in the case, the Department of Personnel gave clearance for action against Kumar.
Over the past six months, the state has greenlit prosecution in 40 cases involving senior officials across departments. These include:
Public Works Department (PWD): AEN Guman Singh, CE Bhuvnesh Mathur, ACE Anand, XEN Ramhet Meena, Ashwani, Hansraj Meena, Premchand, Dinesh Singh, Ashok Gupta, SE Jagram Meena, AEN Asharam, and Ravindra Singhal
Mining: Engineer Pankaj Gehlot
Medical and Health Services: Dr Devi Shankar Maru, Dr Ritesh Jain
Urban Development and Housing: AEN Nathu Singh Rathore
Police: Additional SP Virendra Kumar
Excise: District Excise Officer Kailash Chandra
Panchayati Raj: BDO Puran Mal Meena
Other Officials: Praveen Singhal, Chaman Prakash