CHANDIGARH: The arrest of a person impersonating as 4 senior officer of the Central Bureau of Investigation in Chandigarh last week from the residence of Punjab Chief Minister, which indicates breach of the VIP security, could have wider political ramification Rajinder S. who was allegestly impersonating as ‘senior legal adviser (North Zone), attached to the CBI Director’ was arrested by the CBI on August 14 following a tipoff by the Punjab Chief Minister’s security staff. He was remanded to five days’ police custody by Ram Singh, judicial magistrate, on the CBI plea that a potential threat to the security of Punjab Chief Minister, H.S. Brar was being investigated.
Sources said that senior officers of the CBI are expected to arrive here soon to personally supervise the investigations in view of the sensitive nature of the case. Investigations have revealed that Rajinder S (his full name is believed to be Rajinder Sharma), had been fooling the Punjab Government for the past three years during which time he attained access to the residence of the late Beant Singh and then the present chief minister besides other politicians and senior officers. Interestingly, he had even been provided security of four body guards, including a head constable, by the Punjab Police. Two of the security personnel were deputed to guard his residence at Muktsar (where so fake stamps have been found that search), while the other two accompanied him in his Manuti car. The imposter was reportedly trapped after he sought additional security from officials in the Punjab Chief Minister’s office. Sanjeev Gupta, a DIG of Punjab Police, overseeing VIP security happened to reach the CM’s residence. He became suspicious and informed the local CBI office, which Jed to his arrest.
The CBI is questioning him closely on his claims that he had close association with certain politicians and had helped influence at least 10 MLAs during the recent crisis within the Punjab Congress. The CBI officials indicated that they were skeptical of his claim of being a conduit for the money in allegedly paid to some MLAs in the recent crisis within the Punjab Congress. He even boasted to CBI officials that he would be filing public interest litigation in the High Court on the lines of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha case. The CBI has reportedly recovered some letterheads of the P. M.’s office (alluding to P.V. Narasimha Rao). Some ‘fake’ letterheads of the PMO were recovered from the Patiala printing press, whose employees are being questioned. The CBI officials are still verifying his claim that he had, along with some others, manipulated a missive on the former PMO’s letterhead asking the Punjab Governor, Lt Gen B.K.N. Chhibber to use his office to diffuse the Punjab Congress crisis. The CBI officials are checking how he was provided security and how he was allowed access to the CM’s official residence, often without even the mandatory search and without entry in the gate register. Rejoinders, usually stayed at the Punjab Bhavan and at Delhi, are believed to be a law graduate with his visiting card mentioning Jaipur as his headquarters.
Article extracted from this publication >> August 21, 1996
