Court Remands Satyendar Jain, 4 Others to Judicial Custody in DJB Graft Case
A Delhi court on Wednesday sent former Delhi water minister Satyendar Jain and four others accused in a Delhi Jal Board (DJB) corruption case to 14 days in judicial custody, in an investigation concerning sewage treatment plant projects across localities including Rohini.
Special judge Dig Vinay Singh at Rouse Avenue Courts also remanded former DJB contractual consultant Ankit Srivastava to two days in Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) custody. The court rejected an application moved by Jain’s counsel seeking a declaration that his arrest was illegal.
Rejecting the plea, the court stated that it could not be claimed at this stage that the reasons for arrest were insufficient for the investigating officer. The court added that even if the accused had joined the investigation previously, it could not be argued that the investigating officer was barred from arresting them upon their appearance, noting that the subjective satisfaction of the agency cannot be lightly brushed aside.
Senior advocate N Hariharan, appearing for Jain, argued that as a minister, Jain was not a technical expert and had relied on recommendations and notings submitted by DJB officers and engineers. He noted that the FIR had been registered over two years ago without naming Jain and asserted there was no evidence linking him to the manipulation of tenders.
The other accused sent to judicial custody are Nagendra Yadav, proprietor of AN Enterprises; Raja Kumar Kurra, owner of Euroteck Environment Pvt Ltd; and Pankaj Verma, proprietor of Srijanhar. Former DJB chief executive officer Udit Prakash Rai is also named as an accused in the case.
Seeking custodial interrogation of Srivastava, the ACB alleged that he played a vital role in skewing tenders for upgrading sewage treatment plants (STPs) with Integrated Fixed-Film Activated Sludge (IFAS) technology. The agency stated that Yadav functioned as an intermediary between DJB officials and Euroteck representatives, in conspiracy with Srivastava and another individual named KVNS Rao, to secure contracts in exchange for money.
The ACB highlighted WhatsApp messages between Srivastava and Kurra, alleging Kurra asked for floating media to be excluded from tender conditions to stop competitors from bidding at lower rates. Following this exchange, Srivastava allegedly shared a corrigendum from DJB designating fixed media as the exclusive requirement.
Additional public prosecutor Manish Rawat told the court that multiple hawala transactions had been traced to accounts linked to the accused and required financial trail mapping.
The case was registered on May 11, 2024, following a Directorate of Vigilance complaint alleging irregularities and conspiracy in DJB STP tenders. According to the ACB, contracts initially valued at ₹1,546 crore rose to ₹1,943 crore for three firms, while tenders for 10 STPs in areas including Rohini, Narela, Nilothi, Keshopur, Najafgarh, Pappan Kalan, and Kondli were never advertised.
