Daijiworld Media Network - Bengaluru (SP)

Bengaluru, Jan 13: Contractor Chandrakanth Ramalingam, who has been arrested in connection with unexplained accumulation of huge quantity of newly issued Rs 2,000 denomination notes running into crores of rupees, continues to be inside jail. However, this has not stopped the company owned by him from bagging government works running into crores of rupees.

Ramalingam Construction owned by Chandrakanth and CCK Construction owned by Chakravarthi have bagged contract for civil works worth Rs 73 crore relating to right bank canal of Harangi reservoir.

The state government had invited tenders for civil works from 25 km to 60 km of the said canal. Both the entities had jointly bid for the work. The state government has approved their bid and approved their joint proposal on January 11.

Chandrakanth, whose house was raided by income tax officials on December 4, was later sent to jail after Central Bureau of Investigation took up the case of amassing huge quantity of new currency notes by exchanging old notes. In the meanwhile, local city development minister, K J George, had said that the contract for undertaking development works in BDA Kempegowda Layout that was entrusted to Chandrakanth would be cancelled. He had also said that the company concerned would be blacklisted. Even as the earlier project hangs in limbo, the company has surprisingly bagged a new government project. It has been given eight months time to complete the works.

In the past, after various allegations were levelled, a chief engineer had certified that CCK company was ineligible to procure civil contracts. However, managing director of Kaveri Neeravari Nigam Ltd, Chikkarayappa, had interfered in the matter, and issued another certificate to this company, announcing that it was eligible to get government contracts.