Court says no to tainted armyman’s shield against arrest

SHIMLA - A court in Shimla Tuesday refused to extend an interim anticipatory bail granted to an Indian Army officer caught red-handed in Himachal Pradesh last month by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) while trying to sell army’s diesel in the open market.

District and Sessions Judge B.R. Chandel rejected the plea filed by Captain Vikalp Purohit of the General Reserve Engineer Force, a wing of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), who was posted at Koksar in Lahaul and Spiti district.

Purohit, who was caught by CBI sleuths Aug 20, was granted interim anticipatory bail by the court Aug 23.

CBI Superintendent of Police R. Upasak told IANS that Purohit was summoned to the investigating agency’s headquarters after the rejection of his plea for extension of his interim anticipatory bail.

“We are still trying to know more facts about the supply of diesel to the BRO and its total consumption,” he added.

The diesel that Purohit was allegedly trying to dispose of was meant for the BRO’s Project Deepak which maintains a 222-km stretch between Manali and Sarchu, part of the 475-km Manali-Leh National Highway-21.

The CBI earlier summoned Purohit a number of times and grilled him. It also summoned all the fuel logbooks of the BRO for verification.

Upasak said the army officer was trapped by two decoy customers, who presented themselves as contractors of the state public works department.

They entered into negotiations with him and he was ready to sell 800 litres of diesel to them.

The CBI team was on the lookout for army officials who were allegedly selling diesel meant for the forces in the open market.

The CBI has already registered a case against Purohit.