New Delhi: The CBI`s failure in filing chargesheet within stipulated time has led a Delhi court to grant bail to a man, arrested for allegedly duping people by promising them jobs under the rural development MNREGA scheme for a fee.
Pradeep Jaiswal was arrested by the CBI in March this year for allegedly defrauding people of their money by hosting an advertisement on the Internet inviting applications with a fee for a slew of jobs under Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGA), implemented by the Ministry of Rural Development.
He was, however, granted bail by Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vinod Yadav after the probe agency failed to file a charge sheet against him within the statutorily mandated time limit of 60 days after the arrest in cheating cases.
Jaiswal was arrested on a complaint by a Ministry of Rural Development under secretary.
The ministry of rural development came to know that a website (http://gramin-gov.In) has been made which contains among other things an advertisement seeking applications for 3,000 posts of project manager, district coordinator officer, block coordinator officer, panchayat coordinator officer, computer operator and guard/peon in MNREGA scheme implemented by the ministry.
The website asked applicants to apply with a fee of Rs 300 for general and OBC category and Rs 250 for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes for each application.
The advertisement was floated by an organisation named Rashtriya Gramin Awam Suchna Sansthan, addressed at New Delhi.
The home page of the website also contained the national emblem of the four-headed lion on Ashoka pillar.
An inquiry into the matter pinned Jaiswal as the main accused, who had also arranged office premises for running the organisation.
The agency also accused him of collecting money from innocent unemployed people in his fictitious bank accounts.
Jaiswal was arrested in March and booked under IT Act for advertising false message on the Internet and under the State Emblem of India Act for improper use of the national emblem.
He has also been slapped with the charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code.
The court granted him bail on a personal bond of Rs 20,000 with one surety of the same amount.
PTI
