CBI misses charge sheet deadline, lottery scam accused gets bail

A local court on Monday granted bail to Pari Rajan, accused in the single-digit lottery scam. The court granted bail as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) failed  to file a chargesheet within 60 days of registering the FIR. The FIR (number 64/2015) was registered at the Excise Enforcement and Lottery Prohibition Wing police station at KGF in Kolar and the case was handed over to the CBI in May 2015.

Pari Rajan was booked for criminal conspiracy, cheating under IPC and sections 4 and 5 of the Lottery Prohibition Act. A case was registered against Rajan, a suspected lottery operator, and others mentioned as unknown in the FIR. Rajan filed an application seeking bail under provisions of section 167 of the CrPC. The 17th Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate court granted bail to Rajan on execution of two sureties and conditions that he shall appear before the CBI Investigating officer twice a week. Sources said Rajan was not released from prison on Monday as he did not produce the sureties.

Acting on a report on the illegal lottery scam, the state government had handed over the case to the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) on May 7, 2015. The CID submitted an interim report on May 22, 2015 mentioning the involvement of certain senior police officers.

A senior IPS officer was placed under suspension based on the CID report and the government ordered a CBI investigation on May 26, 2015. The government order for CBI investigation stated that the agency would probe the  lottery scam prior to 2007, the year lotteries were banned in the state. Though the scam was handed over to the CBI in May, the agency took up the case only in August 2015. A senior official said that as of now, the agency has collected 280 files in connection with cases registered by the Lottery Enforcement Wing across the state.
DH News Service