Tarun Karthick
Port Blair, 01 September 2023
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had officially filed a final report in a high-profile case dating back to December 2020, which alleged irregularities and malpractices in the outsourcing of manning work for foreshore sector vessels by the Directorate of Shipping Services (DSS) to M/s ABS Marine Services Pvt. Ltd. (ABS MSPL), Chennai. The case was registered against several individuals, including government officials and private individuals.
The FIR, initially filed by the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) Port Blair of CBI, had named key figures, including Capt. Rajinder Kumar, former Director (Shipping Services) (Retd.) of the Directorate of Shipping Services, Andaman and Nicobar Administration, and Mr. R Veeraiah, former Deputy Director of the same entity. Additionally, Mr. J Gopinath, OIC (Planning), Directorate of Shipping Services, Andaman and Nicobar Administration, and Capt. P.B Narayanan and Mrs. Shreelatha Narayanan, Directors of M/s ABS Marine Services Pvt. Ltd., Chennai, were accused. The FIR also included the company M/s ABS Marine Services Pvt. Ltd. and unspecified public servants and private individuals.
The case was initiated following a written complaint received by the CBI from Mr. M.C.R Mukund, Dy.S.P, CBI, SPE, Port Blair. The complaint alleged a series of criminal activities, including criminal conspiracy, abuse of official position, and cheating, by the accused individuals. It was claimed that these actions had resulted in substantial financial losses to the government.
Nicobar Times had reported on the registration of the FIR on December 29, 2020, bringing the case into the public eye. However, developments indicate that the Court of the Special Judge at Port Blair has accepted the CBI’s Final Report on this case, ultimately leading to its closure.
The CBI’s Final Report, submitted to the court, cited insufficient evidence, both oral and documentary, collected during the course of the investigation. These findings, according to the CBI, were not substantial enough to substantiate the allegations made in the FIR against the accused individuals.
The court’s decision to accept the CBI’s Final Report was made in December 2022, effectively closing the case and bringing an end to the allegations of irregularities and malpractices in the outsourcing of manning work for foreshore sector vessels.