The Directorate of Enforcement’s Raipur Zonal Office has apprehended Taman Singh Sonwani, the former Chairman of the Chhattisgarh Public Service Commission, in a case related to corruption, question-paper leakage, and manipulation of the CGPSC State Service Examinations under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. Sonwani was taken into custody on July 25 under Section 19 of the PMLA and presented before the Special Court (PMLA) in Raipur. The court has remanded him to ED custody for seven days until July 30.
The ED’s investigation was triggered by an FIR filed by the Economic Offences Wing/Anti-Corruption Bureau (EOW/ACB) in Raipur, followed by a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The case involves allegations of criminal conspiracy, cheating, and corruption during the CGPSC State Service Examinations conducted in 2020 and 2021. Sonwani, during his tenure as CGPSC Chairman, allegedly conspired with other public officials and private individuals to leak question papers and manipulate the selection process in return for illegal favors, aiming to secure the fraudulent appointment of his relatives and other favored candidates to high-ranking public positions.
Further investigation uncovered that the CGPSC’s recruitment rules were modified in 2021 to exclude the term “nephew” from the definition of “family,” facilitating the selection of Sonwani’s relatives. The illicit gains were acquired partly in cash and partly laundered through complex banking transactions. Sonwani, in his statement recorded under Section 50 of the PMLA, 2002, provided evasive and uncooperative responses, withholding crucial information. The ED clarified that his arrest aims to track the illicit proceeds, establish the money flow, and identify other individuals involved in the scheme, with ongoing investigations.
