| How Lokpal can curb the Corruption Posted: 18 Aug 2011 02:05 PM PDT Existing System | System Proposed by civil society | No politician or senior officer ever goes to jail despite huge evidence because Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) and CBI directly come under the government. Before starting investigation or initiating prosecution in any case, they have to take permission from the same bosses, against whom the case has to be investigated. | Lokpal at centre and Lokayukta at state level will be independent bodies. ACB and CBI will be merged into these bodies. They will have power to initiate investigations and prosecution against any officer or politician without needing anyone's permission. Investigation should be completed within 1 year and trial to get over in next 1 year. Within two years, the corrupt should go to jail. | No corrupt officer is dismissed from the job because Central Vigilance Commission, which is supposed to dismiss corrupt officers, is only an advisory body. Whenever it advises government to dismiss any senior corrupt officer, its advice is never implemented. | Lokpal and Lokayukta will have complete powers to order dismissal of a corrupt officer. CVC and all departmental vigilance will be merged into Lokpal and state vigilance will be merged into Lokayukta. | No action is taken against corrupt judges because permission is required from the Chief Justice of India to even register an FIR against corrupt judges. | Lokpal & Lokayukta shall have powers to investigate and prosecute any judge without needing anyone's permission. | Nowhere to go - People expose corruption but no action is taken on their complaints. | Lokpal & Lokayukta will have to enquire into and hear every complaint. | There is so much corruption within CBI and vigilance departments. Their functioning is so secret that it encourages corruption within these agencies. | All investigations in Lokpal & Lokayukta shall be transparent. After completion of investigation, all case records shall be open to public. Complaint against any staff of Lokpal & Lokayukta shall be enquired and punishment announced within two months. | Weak and corrupt people are appointed as heads of anti-corruption agencies. | Politicians will have absolutely no say in selections of Chairperson and members of Lokpal & Lokayukta. Selections will take place through a transparent and public participatory process. | Citizens face harassment in government offices. Sometimes they are forced to pay bribes. One can only complaint to senior officers. No action is taken on complaints because senior officers also get their cut. | Lokpal & Lokayukta will get public grievances resolved in time bound manner, impose a penalty of Rs 250 per day of delay to be deducted from the salary of guilty officer and award that amount as compensation to the aggrieved citizen. | Nothing in law to recover ill gotten wealth. A corrupt person can come out of jail and enjoy that money. | Loss caused to the government due to corruption will be recovered from all accused. | Small punishment for corruption- Punishment for corruption is minimum 6 months and maximum 7 years. | Enhanced punishment - The punishment would be minimum 5 years and maximum of life imprisonment. |
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| The Biography of Sri Arvind Kejriwal Posted: 18 Aug 2011 01:56 PM PDT  Arvind Kejriwal is an Indian social activist fighting for greater transparency in Government. He was awarded Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership in 2006, for activating India’s Right to Information movement at grassroots and social activities to empower the poorest citizens to fight corruption by holding the government answerable to the people.
Arvind Kejriwal was born in Hissar, Haryana in 1968, and graduated from IIT Kharagpur as a Mechanical engineer in 1989. His father was an engineer and he spent most of his childhood living in small northern Indian towns like Sonepat, Mathura and Hissar. His Career
Arvind Kejriwal was always concerned about corruption and the passivity of the people. After quitting his job with the Tata Steel, he took time off to work with the Missionaries of Charity and the Ramakrishna Mission in eastern and northeastern India.
He joined the Indian Revenue Service (IRS), a part of the Indian Administrative Services in 1992. He was posted at the Income-tax Commissioner’s Office in Delhi as Joint Commissioner. Soon, he realized that much of the corruption prevalent in government is owing to lack of transparency in the bureaucratic procedures. Even while in his official position, he started crusading against the corrupt practices.Initially, Arvind was instrumental in bringing in a number of changes to increase transparency in the Income Tax office.
In January 2000, he took a sabbatical from work and founded Parivartan – a Delhi based citizens' movement which works on ensuring a just, transparent and accountable governance. Thereafter, in February 2006, he resigned from the job, to work full-time at ‘Parivartan’.
His Work for Right to Information
He along with Aruna Roy and others, campaigned for the Right to Information Act, which soon became a silent social movement, Delhi Right to Information Act was passed in 2001 and eventually at national level Indian Parliament passed the Right to Information Act (RTI) in 2005. Thereafter, in July 2006, he spearheaded an awareness campaign for RTI across India. To motivate others Arvind has now instituted an RTI Award through his organisation. Through individual and community cases, Arvind has taken on many deeply entrenched public bureaucracies in India, including the Income Tax department, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, the Public Distribution System (PDS), the Delhi Electricity Board, and others.
Role in Jan Lokpal Bill
As a member of India Against Corruption he is an active participant in the movement for the enactment of Jan Lokpal Bill. He is considered a key figure along with social activist Anna Hazare. On August 16 2011, Hazare was arrested four hours before the planned indefinite hunger strike. Rajan Bhagat, spokesman for Delhi Police, said police arrested Hazare under a legal provision that bans public gatherings and protests at the park in Delhi where he was planning to begin his hunger strike.Arvind Kejriwal was also arrested along with other key members of the India Against Corruption movement.
Awards
2004: Ashoka Fellow, Civic Engagement.
2005: ‘Satyendra Dubey Memorial Award’, IIT Kanpur for his campaign for bringing transparency in Government.
2006: Ramon Magsaysay Award for Emergent Leadership.
2006: CNN-IBN, ‘Indian of the Year’ in Public Service
2009: Distinguished Alumnus Award, IIT Kharagpur for Emergent Leadership.
2010: Policy Change Agent of the Year, Economic Times Corporate Excellence Award along with Aruna Roy.   |
| List of politicians in India charged with corruption Posted: 18 Aug 2011 01:46 PM PDT List of politicians in India charged with corruption |
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| Name | Position | Charges | Trial result |
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| Lalu Prasad Yadav | Chief Minister of Bihar, Minister of Railways | Fodder scam, others | acquitted in 2006 | | Madhu Koda | Chief Minister of Jharkhand | Rs 4000 crores (USD 800 mn) graft money case | In jail since 2009, investigation continues | | A. Raja | Union Cabinet Minister for Communications and Information Technology | 2G spectrum scam | Indicted and arrested, Awaiting trial | | Suresh Kalmadi | Member of Parliament | Criminal conspiracy and cheating related to 2010 Commonwealth Games | Indicted and arrested, Awaiting trail | | Suresh Jain | Minister for food and civil supplies, Maharashtra | corruption in Jalgaon District Co-operative Bank | Implicated by the Sawant Comission | | M. K. Kanimozhi | Member of Parliament | 2G spectrum scam | Indicted and arrested, Awaiting trial | | R.Balakrishna Pillai | Ex-Minister of Kerala | Idamalayar Dam Graft case | Convicted, serving sentence | | P. V. Narasimha Rao (deceased) | Prime Minister | Alleged offering of bribes, alleged framing of V.P. Singh, and cheating Lakhubhai Pathak | Higher court overturned conviction in the first case and the trial court acquitted him in the other two cases | | Balram Jakhar | Union minister and Speaker | Hawala (illegal foreign exchange) case | Acquitted of all charges |
Source: Wikipedia   |
| Background of anti-corruption struggle by Anna Hazare Posted: 18 Aug 2011 01:28 PM PDT For latest updates on the anti-corruption struggle, read http://www.news.biharprabha.com/2011/08/chronology-of-anti-corruption-movement-by-anna-hazare/ 22 June 2011
In a veiled warning to Anna Hazare for his proposed fast, Congress leader Digvijay Singh on Wednesday indicated that the Gandhian might be meted out the same treatment, depending upon the prevailing situation at that time, as yoga guru Ramdev was given at Ramlila ground. 16 June 2011
The Government and the civil society split wide open due to differences in jointly drafting the bill. Government representatives said that if a consensus on the common bill was not reached, two drafts would be sent to the Cabinet, one drafted by the Government and the other drafted by the civil society. Team Anna also claimed that only 15 points, out of a total 71 recommended, were agreed upon and included in the joint draft. Hazare declared that if the government version of the bill was passed in the Parliament, he would start his hunger strike from August 16, 2011. 9 June 2011
Hazare described his fight against corruption as the “Second Freedom Struggle” and set an ultimatum of 15 August 2011, as the last date to pass a strong Jan Lokpal Bill, threatening to otherwise intensify his anti-corruption agitation and start another fast from 16 August. 6 June 2011
Prime Minister Mnamohan Singh justified the action against Baba Ramdev as an operation that had to be conducted, and that there was no alternative. However Manmohan Singh did not elaborate as to why force was used on a peaceful gathering and why the swoop was done at 1 AM in the morning. 5 June 2011
At midnight, police raided the grounds when most protesters were sleeping and Ramdev was busy at a meeting with his core group.
A large police force lobbed tear gas shells, burned the place and lathicharge the crowd at 1 am (IST) to evict them.
Police had arranged buses to drop supporters at railway stations and bus stands in advance; had ammunition ready and were in battle-gear wearing vests and helmets and kept some ambulances on standby.
Delhi Police arrested Ramdev, who was disguised in a salwar kameez with a group of female protesters heading peacefully towards the New Delhi Railway Station
Ramdev was held in a government guesthouse for a few hours and then sent to Dehradun in a BSF aircraft.
Ramdev was sent to his Patanjali Yogpeeth ashram in Haridwar where he delivered a press conference.
53 people were injured and were treated at the Lok Nayak Jai Prakash (LNJP) hospital, AIIMS Trauma Center and Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital.
One of Baba Ramdev’s supporters was injured in the incident and her condition was still critical as of 17th August 2011.
Protesters huddled near the Metro station, bus depots and railway stations. Many walked down to Gurdwara Bangla Sahib and other nearby ashrams.According to New Delhi railway station authorities, supporters continued to leave in batches through the course of the day. While several supporters spent the day at a park near Ramlila Maidan, others took shelter at an Arya Samaj facility in Paharganj.
Ramdev was prohibited from entering Delhi for 15 days. 4 June 2011
Swami Ramdev begins his indefinite hunger strike at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi to bring back the black money stashed in tax havens abroad.
65,000 followers gathered at Ramlila Maidan
In a press conference in the evening Kapil Sibbal made public a letter from Ramdev’s camp to call off the hunger strike. Ramdev took it as a betrayal and hardened his position. 16 April 2011
The first meeting regarding a draft of the Lokpal Bill was held on 16 April. The government agreed to audio-record all meetings of the Lokpal Bill panel and to hold public consultations before a final draft is prepared.Hazare demanded that the proceedings be televised live but the government refused. 9 April 2011
After accepting all the demands of Hazare, the Government of India issued a Official Gazette saying that the draft of the lokpal would be made and presented in the coming monsoon session of Lok Sabha.
Victory celebrations took place at locations throughout the country. and even Hazare’s village.
Bollywood lauded the outcome, repeating their support for the movement.
Protesters and leaders of the movement alike stated that the path to attaining complete passage of the bill is still a difficult one, and the movement may see harsher days ahead.
Many commentators have called the movement the ‘wake-up’ call for India. Within a day of the beginning of the agitation, more than 30,000 people had pledged their support to the Lokpal Bill. Organisers of the India Against Corruption said 30,000 people from Maharashtra expressed their support on their website.The website has 20,000 members in Mumbai alone.Within a few days the Facebook page for India Against Corruption had more than 220,000 likes. 8 April 2011 Protests spread to numerous other places, including Mumbai, Kolkata, Thiruvananthapuram, Hyderabad, Jaipur, Chennai, Patna, Bhopal, Ahmedabad, Ranchi, Pune, and the University of Jammu. The government continued to squabble with the activists stating that the bill drafting committee will be headed by a government appointed minister and not a civil society member as the protesters demanded to avoid allowing the government to make the bill less powerful.
The Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, met with the President of India to outline to her how the government was going ahead with the demands of the population. 15 supporters of Hazare on fast were hospitalized.
Bollywood came out in support of the protests, with actors, musicians and directors speaking in support of the movement and Hazare. Director Farah Khan, actor Anupam Kher, music director Vishal Dadlani, poet-filmmaker Pritish Nandy and actor Tom Alter all visited Jantar Mantar; others stated their support for the movement via social networking websites or the media. Oscar winning Indian composer A. R. Rahman also declared his support for the anti-graft movement.
Qatari artist M. F. Hussain showed his support by drawing a cartoon of Hazare.
Indian students at Cambridge University, the former alma mater of the Indian Prime Minister also expressed their support for the movement.
Many prominent people from government agencies as well as from various corporate houses came out in support of the movement. Some of them were – Delhi Metro chief E. Sreedharan.(also called the Metro Man of India), Punj Lloyd chairman Atul Punj, Maruti Suzuki chairman R. C. Bhargava, Hero group’s Sunil Munjal, Tata Steel vice-chairman B Muthuraman, Bajaj Auto Chairman Rahul Bajaj, Godrej Group head Adi Godrej, Biocon Chairman and Managing Director Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw and Kotak Mahindra Bank vice-chairman & managing director Uday Kotak. They all declared their support for Hazare and the movement.
ASSOCHAM President Dilip Modi and FICCI Director General Rajiv Kumar, too came out in support of the movement.
The Government of India accepted the compromise formula that there be a politician chairman and an activist non-politician Co-Chairman. It was reported that Pranab Mukherjee will be the Chairman of the draft committee while Shanti Bhushan will be the co-chairman.Bhushan was one of the original drafters of the Lokpal Bill along with Hazare, Justice N. Santosh Hegde, advocate Prashant Bhushan, and RTI activist Arvind Kejriwal. 7 April 2011 Protests have continued as the Government fails to offer better terms to the activists
Two rounds of talks failed. There was agreement regarding constituting a panel to examine the Bill but the government would not accede to demands that it should be a formally constituted panel or that Hazare should lead it. As a consequence of this, Hazare continued his fast.
Narendra Modi, the chief Minister of Gujarat lashes out at Manmohan Singh for resisting the passage of the Jan Lokpal Bill.
Sonia Gandhi, the president of the Indian National Congress party and the head of the National Advisory Council appealed to Hazare to end his indefinite fast.
Hazare and the protesters tried to keep the protests non-political. No politicians were welcome at the site of the fast. Former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Uma Bharti and pro Sonia Gandhi journalist Barkha Dutt were forced by civilians to leave, after the protesters objected to their presence, which they believed was harming the integrity of their movement. 5 April 2011 Protesters have come out in support of Anna Hazare
Hazare initiated his fast at Jantar Mantar in Delhi. Elsewhere, people attended a protest at Freedom Park, Bangalore.
Campaigners for India Against Corruption (IAC) estimated that a petition circulated in the city of Pune which demanded that the government enact a bill had attracted between 5000 and 6000 signatures between 3 April and 5 April. Hazare has been involved with IAC, a group established by various prominent activists with the primary purpose of achieving the legal enactment and subsequent enforcement of a strong version of the Jan Lokpal bill 4 April 2011
Hazare announced that he would commence his “fast unto death” and that this would last until a comprehensive measure to tackle corruption was introduced. He claimed that the government had excluded “civil society” from the panel set up to draft the Jan Lokpal Bill, and implied that at least one of the people who was to be on the drafting committee – Sharad Pawar – might be unsuitable for that role because of his large landholdings. Kiran Bedi and Swami Agnivesh voiced their support for Hazare. 30 March 2011
Kapil Dev, a former captain of the Indian national cricket team, wrote a letter to the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, complaining that the many investigations into scams arising from the recent Commonwealth Games had achieved nothing so far. He said that, “Why can’t we have an independent Lokpal to look into these scams? I consider you as the cleanest politician in the recent history and I urge you for a Jan Lokpal Bill”. 28 March 2011
There were protest marches in various cities across the world, including some in the US. These included a 240-mile march in California that began on 12 March in San Diego and ended on 26 March at the statue erected in honour of Gandhi in San Francisco. 13 March 2011
A poster against corruption in India
A group of Delhi residents drove around the city dressed in similar clothing in an attempt to raise awareness of corruption issues and to gain support for the Jan Lokpal Bill.   |
| Chronology of anti corruption movement by Anna Hazare Posted: 18 Aug 2011 12:52 PM PDT 
18 August 2011
Anna Hazare agreed to leave jail after Delhi Police granted him permission to fast for 15-days against corruption at Ramlila Maidan. However, he would spend another night in Jail till the venue is ready. Arvind Kejriwal left Tihar jail being there for two days. Kejriwal called this move as just the beginning of their fight against corruption, and also confirmed that Anna Hazare would leave the jail once the grounds at Ramlila Maidan are ready for the fast. 17 August 2011 After almost a day, Anna still refused to leave jail and spent the night in a room in Tihar jail, despite the government decision to free him. Delhi Police made concessions for Anna Hazare to fast, stepping up from seven days to 14 days and finally 21 days at Ramlila Maidan. Congress made a statement that they suspected a foreign hand in the protests and asked the government to probe if the US was behind Anna’s agitation . 16 August 2011 Anna Hazare was detained by Delhi Police in the early morning before he could start his hunger strike at JP park, Delhi. Delhi Police had asked Anna not to leave his home, which he declined, and Anna was detained at his residence in Mayur Vihar. Arvind Kejriwal, Kiran Bedi, Manish Sisodia and more than 1200 supporters. were also taken into preventive custody by the Police. Anna Hazare was sent to seven days judicial custody to Tihar jail after refusing to sign a personal bond to be released on bail. Shehla Masood, an RTI activist and a strong supporter of Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption movement, was shot dead around 11.30am IST. An unidentified assailant shot her in front of her house in Koh-e-Fiza, Bhopal Kiran Bedi and Shanti Bhushan, detained by Delhi Police on the morning ahead of Anna Hazare’s fast-unto-death, were released in the evening at around 6:30pm IST. The current telecom minister Kapil Sibal was greeted with black flags and booed by a group of students at a seminar on the Jan Lokpal bill. With the Government of India, preparing to release Anna Hazare late in the night, however Anna refused to come out of Tihar jail until the government agreed to an unconditional permission to hold protests at JP Park. Demonstrations were held all over India protesting Anna Hazare’s arrest. In Chennai, Mahatma Gandhi’s secretary, V Kalyanam led the protestors. He said – “India will get a sure gold medal if corruption is entered as an item in the Olympic Games. We may not be a force in football or athletics or hockey. But India is the undisputed global leader in corruption." Referring to Anna Hazare's arrest in New Delhi, Kalyanam said it was easier to fight foreign tyranny than the tyranny of our own people. He ridiculed the contention of Union ministers like Kapil Sibal and Chidambaram that Parliament was supreme and civil society had no voice. 15 August 2011
Anna Hazare announced at a press conference that he and his supporters were determined to go ahead with the fast on 16 August, 2011 as planned. He also urged people to court arrest to push for a stronger Lokpal bill
Section 144 was imposed a night before the planned protest date, at JP Park, Rajghat and Dilli Gate, which prohibited assembly of five or more persons. 14 August 2011
In a scathing attack on Anna Hazare, Congress spokesperson, Manish Tewari, and an MP from Ludhiana constituency, described Anna Hazare as being “involved in corruption from top to bottom”, “neck deep in corruption", and also mentioning that the social activist needed to be "shown his place". For April’s anti-corruption movement, please read http://www.news.biharprabha.com/2011/08/background-of-anti-corruption-struggle-by-anna-hazare/
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| Investors summit will accelerate business activities in Bihar Posted: 18 Aug 2011 07:17 AM PDT Investors Summit,jointly organized by ASSOCHAM and Bihar Chamber of Commerce (BCC) in October-November, would showcase Bihar as the “state of rising sun” so as to underline the state’s improved state of affairs that has created business opportunities for investors. A delegation of Assocham and BCC on Friday called on CM Nitish Kumar, deputy CM Sushil Kumar Modi, minister for industries Renu Kumari, agriculture minister Narendra Singh and industries department principal secretary C K Mishra to discuss the details of the summit. “They welcomed the proposal to hold the summit and assured wholehearted support of the state government to make it a successful event,” BCC president O P Sah said on Saturday. The delegation led by Sah comprised Assocham’s Bihar Development Council chief Ravi Wig, Assocham secretary general D S Rawat and its director U K Joshi. The theme for the summit would be “Advantage Bihar: Encashing Opportunities”, Sah said. The summit would attract investors with interest in sectors like power, food processing, fruit processing, cold chain units, information technology and professional and technological institutions, Sah said and termed the state government’s new Industrial Incentive Policy as “pragmatic”.   |
| Over 2 lakhs Buddhist pilgrims to visit Bihar in this Kalchakra Posted: 18 Aug 2011 05:13 AM PDT The upcoming Kalachakra initiations in Bodh Gaya by His Holiness the Dalai Lama is expected to draw two hundred thousand devotees from different countries including 10,000 Buddhists from the Indian state Arunachal Pradesh, said Thupten Jampa, the Joint Secretary of the 32nd Kalachakra Organising Committee. Kalchakra is a Sanskrit word which means the time-wheel. The initiations first taught by Buddha Shakyamuni is considered by Buddhists as one of the most important teachings. This 32nd Kalachakra teachings scheduled from December 31, 2011 to January 10, 2012 is sponsored by the family of late Dorji Khandu, the former Chief Minister of Arunachal Pradesh. “His Holiness the Dalai Lama agreed to confer the 32nd Kalachakra initiations at Bhodhgaya, Bihar,” Jampa told Phayul. “Our chief organiser, Pema Khandu, Minister of Tourism and WRD, government of Arunachal Pradesh has already gained full cooperation and support from the Bihar administration," the Organising Committee member said. Speaking on the accommodation facilities for the devotees, the Joint Secretary told Phayul that tent accommodation charges for devotees from Arunachal Pradesh will be waivered while the rest of attendees will have to pay nominal accommodation charges. “We will charge only the basic cost of the tent. Electricity and water will be free of cost to all the attendants at the Kalachakra teachings,” clarified Jampa. Jampa said that the Organising Committee will be able to provide accommodation for only the leading organisations in exile like "the Tibetan Youth Congress and the Tibetan Women's Association” who are working in collaboration with the Kalachakra organisers. On the sidelines of the Kalachakra initiations, a collective prayer session on January 1has also been scheduled at Buddha park in Patna, the capital city of Bihar which is expected to draw world religious leaders and noble peace laureates. His Holiness Dalai Lama and Nitish Kumar, the chief minister of Bihar are scheduled to take part in the congregation.   |
| Atlanta to develop the roads in Bihar Posted: 18 Aug 2011 12:12 AM PDT Atlanta has secured single order of INR 9.17 billion from government of Bihar. This project envisages four laning of Mohania – Ara section of National Highway No 30 on DBFOT Toll basis for a length of 116.76 Kms connecting Patna and Durgavati via Dinara and Hisadi Bazar. The project is quoted with a position grant of INR 2.98 billion to be availed during the construction period of 30 months. Atlanta has formed an SPV in the name of MORA Tollways to undertake the subject project. Mr Rajhoo Bbarot MD of Atlanta said that "Atlanta was qualified on the basis of past experience and financial capabilities. The project has concession period of 25 years. We are confident to complete this project much before the stipulated time period." Atlanta, an ISO 9001:2008 certified, well diversified, value focused and asset based company has pan India presence. It has established itself in the fastest growing segments infrastructure development, mining, and realty.   |
| New peak of bribery presented by a Babu in Bihar Posted: 17 Aug 2011 08:10 PM PDT New peak of bribery has been presented by a Babu in Bihar. With the Vigilance Bureau sleuths always on the prowl, one officer of the Bihar Administrative Service — Manoj Kumar — thought an ”out of the box” idea to accept kickbacks. Posted as district manager of the State Food Corporation in Vaishali district, Manoj used to seek new vehicles of different brands, instead of cash as bribe, to curry favour. This way he used to evade the eagles eyes of vigilance sleuths. But one fine morning when he was caught red-handed, the raiding party was flabbergasted to see a fleet of brand new cars, all lined up at his house in Muzaffarpur. The vehicles included Santro, Tata Victa, Tata Nano, Marshal, Bolero and two Fiat cars. All the vehicles were eventually seized by the Vigilance Department. Officials also stumbled upon his ill-gotten wealth which included a palatial house, six plots, Rs 5.16 lakh in cash, unaccounted jewellery, 14 passbooks banks, a rifle and huge investments in insurance. Additional Director General, Vigilance, P K Thakur said the value of the property was yet to be estimated. "He recently received a Nano from a Patna resident," said an official. Manoj, who joined the Bihar Administrative Service in 1993, was trapped in the vigilance net for the second time in the last two years.   |
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