Ex-Bihar minister Illiyas Hussain, four others found guilty in Bitumen scam

RANCHI: A Ranchi CBI special court has awarded three years of rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs 32 lakh each to former Bihar minister Md Illiyas Hussain and four others in relation to the notorious Bitumen Scam. The case, which originated in 1996, revealed massive corruption in the carriage of bitumen for road construction projects in undivided Bihar.

The CBI had filed an FIR on August 6, 1996, based on the complaint of transporting bulk bitumen fraudulently from Haldia to Hazaribagh through Barauni. On investigation, it was found that though the record reflected the transport of the bitumen, no delivery was actually made. Instead, the transporter diverted it and sold it in the open market in Kolkata and, at the same time, claimed the transportation charges from the government. The accused were convicted under different sections of the Indian Penal Code, such as criminal conspiracy, fraud, and forgery, and sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988.

The court convicted Md. Illiyas Hussain, together with Shahabuddin Baigh, Pawan Kumar Agarwal, Ashok Kumar Agarwal, and Vinay Kumar Sinha, for their role in plotting the scam. They were all sentenced to three years of harsh imprisonment and Rs 32 lakh in fines. The judgement is a major milestone towards addressing corruption, upholding the responsibility of government officials and private organisations engaging in fraudulent activities. The Bitumen Scam was one of the most significant corruption scandals in Bihar in the 1990s, highlighting widespread abuse of government funds meant for infrastructure development.