Crime Branch raids Tripura DFO's residence after recovery of huge cash from his relative

Agartala, Apr 25 (PTI) A team of Crime Branch on Saturday carried out a raid in the official residence of District Forest Officer (DFO), South Tripura, Gaurav Ravindra Wagh, in connection with the recovery of Rs 59.95 lakh in cash at Agartala railway station on April 23, an official said.
    Police seized some documents, CCTV footage, one laptop and a drone camera from the DFO’s residence as part of the investigation.
    "During routine checking at Agartala Railway station on April 23, Rajendra Chintaman Kaklij, a Mumbai-based relative of the DFO, was found with Rs 59.94 lakh in cash and was taken to Agartala GRP police station for interrogation," Officer in Charge (OC) of the police station, Raju Bhowmik told PTI.
    The OC said that as Rajendra failed to explain the source of the money and intended use of the cash, he was arrested under the Prevention of Corruption Act and various sections under BNS and was produced before a court, which granted him police custody for five days.
    According to Bhowmik, the person who was arrested for carrying the huge amount of cash used the DFO's official vehicle to reach the Agartala railway station from Belonia in South Tripura.
    "Sensing the gravity of the crime, the case has been handed over to the Crime Branch for proper investigation (on Saturday). A team conducted a raid in the official residence of the DFO at Belonia and seized some documents, CCTV footage, a laptop and a drone camera as part of the investigation," he said.
    Meanwhile, the DFO has been asked to report to Aryana Bhavan (headquarters of the Forest department) to ensure an impartial probe into the huge cash recovery case.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)