CERT-In scientists collect electronic data

Bhopal: Two scientists of the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-In) visited Bhopal and collected pending electronic data of six tenders linked with the mammoth e-tendering scam.

Economic Offences Wing (EOW), which was assigned probe into the scam by former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, had sought technical assistance from CERT-In to trace footprints left by the ‘suspects’. FIRs were registered after Kamal Nath became the chief minister.

Under the scanner are GVPR Engineers Limited, Indian Hume Pipe Company Limited, JMC Projects (India) Limited, Ram Kumar Narwani from Bhopal, Mantena Constructions Ltd and Sorathia Velji Ratna & Co, Gujarat.

The director general of Madhya Pradesh EOW Sushovan Banerjee had met the CERT-In chief in Delhi last week owing to an undue delay in furnishing reports despite several requests, said sources. CERT-In officers have sought some more time to furnish the reports, said an officer seeking anonymity.

In 2018, EOW had approached CERT-In to pay a visit to MP State Electronics Development Corporation (MPSEDC) to get a mirror image of the data related to the e-tendering scam that was seized after a breach led to the Rs3,000 crore scam forcing the government to revoke nine of its major tenders that were floated in 2018.

EOW had confiscated 9TB data from MPSEDC in the probe into the scam. CERT-In is an expert group within the ministry of electronics and information technology that handles computer security incidents. It is also a nodal agency to deal with cyber security threats such as hacking and phishing.

CERT-In had detected footprints of hackers who infiltrated the e-procurement software. Their report confirmed that e-tenders were ‘modified’ through unauthorised access in the software. CERT-In had also send IP addresses of systems that were used to hack three tenders (91, 93 and 94) floated by Madhya Pradesh Jal Nigam Maryadit.

Sources say Haresh Sorathia – the director of Sorathia Velji Ratna & Company, who was declared an absconder by a special court for EOW last week, is trying surrender in the court. He had been ignoring court summons and was on the run ever since the EOW named him in the chargesheet in 2019. ADJ Sanjeev Pandey had issued the order while hearing EOW’s application.

Haresh was recently asked by the Supreme Court to surrender before the trial court. EOW had also charge-sheeted Haresh and six others in the multi-crore scam.

The agency has registered nine cases in the scam and investigation of one case has been completed. Sorathia Velji Ratna & Co is registered in Vadodara. Other directors of the company, including, Meghli Velji Sorathia, Ashok Velji Bambhaniya, Diwaliben Sorathia, Bharat Sorathia, Chandresh Sorathia, Mahesh Sorathia, Paresh Sorathia, Manoj Vasava and Raju Gehani are also being probed.


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