The Thane police investigators were taken aback when they found that one of the accused arrested in connection with telecom fraud was the younger brother of a serving inspector general of police, Punjab.

In May 2005, the Thane police received a complaint from the legal cell of the Reliance Telecommunications alleging gross misuse of company’s phones for re-routing international calls, causing a huge loss to the Department of Telecommunications (DoT).

Following systematic investigations, the Thane cops zeroed in on Rakesh Sharma of Chandigarh along with his associate Gurdip Singh. Sharma was arrested on May 10, 2005 after his anticipatory bail was rejected by a lower court.  

The entire operation was well coordinated by the Vigilance Cell of Videsh Sanchar Nigam Limited, the Intelligence Bureau and the Reliance’s legal cell which kept a secret watch on the alleged illegal routing of international calls by Sharma and Gurdip Singh.

The duo’s illegal activities first came to light when a bank cheque meant for payment to Reliance phone bills bounced at the clearing desk. Investigations further revealed that all the connections procured were in the name of a fake corporate house.

The investigation trail of the unpaid bill led the police to one Pramod Modi of Gaurav Engineering Works in Thane. His interrogation led the team to Sharma and Singh. Sharma happened to be the brother of a senior Punjab police official.

Baljeet Parmar/ DNA-Daily News & Analysis Source: 3D Syndication