Odishatv Bureau

Bhubaneswar/Nuapada: In a major development in the tender fraud case, police have arrested Bhawanipatna-based blacklisted superclass contractor Banti Agarwal in Haryana.

According to reports, a team led by Nuapada SP Madkar Sandip Sampath was on a secret mission to Haryana to nab the accused.

After arresting Banti, the police team produced him before a local court in Haryana and is now bringing him to Odisha on a transit remand, said sources.

Meanwhile, Banti’s father and wife have also been arrested in connection with the tender fraud.

Banti along with his father is accused of providing 48 fake term deposit receipts (TDRs) as security to win government tenders worth over Rs 10 to 12 crore on different occasions in Kalahandi, Bolangir, Bargarh and Nuapada districts.

Also Read: Tender fraud: Odisha blacklists super class contractor Banti Agarwal

The Public Works department (PWD) had detected the fraud in tenders in Kalahandi district and lodged complaint against Banti.

On October 13, the State government blacklisted the contractor under Rule-4 of OPWD Contractor’s Registration Rules 1967.

Later, an FIR was registered against Banti and his wife Sabita at Bhawanipatna police station.

It is worth mentioning that involvement of some bank and works department officials in the fraud is also being alleged.

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