A Delhi court has extended the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) custody of Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) official Mudavath Devula and private company executive Bharat Mathur by two days. This extension is related to a bribery case involving an alleged payment of Rs 2.5 lakh for regulatory approvals. The court granted the extension after the probe agency sought more time for interrogation and evidence confrontation.
Mudavath Devula, a Deputy Director General at DGCA’s Airworthiness Directorate, and Bharat Mathur, a Senior Vice President at a private aerospace-related company, were arrested by the CBI on April 18. They were apprehended while reportedly accepting a bribe of Rs 2.5 lakh. Devula is accused of seeking favors from private entities in exchange for granting approvals, while Mathur allegedly facilitated the bribery transaction between the DGCA official and a company seeking drone import clearance.
The CBI, following the arrests, conducted searches at various locations linked to the accused in Delhi. These searches resulted in the recovery of Rs 37 lakh in cash, as well as gold and silver coins, and multiple digital devices. The agency had registered a corruption case against Devula on April 18 and is continuing its investigation to uncover the extent of the alleged collusion between officials and private entities.
