Lieutenant Colonel Rahul Arvind Pawar, who was investigated by both the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for allegedly accepting a bribe, is set to face trial in a disproportionate assets case.The CBI Special Court in Haryana, Panchkula, has framed charges against him, and his trial is scheduled to commence on December 10.The court observed that the FIR in the disproportionate assets case was registered against Lieutenant Colonel Pawar on the complaint of a CBI inspector for allegedly “acquiring assets disproportionate to the known sources of income” to the tune of Rs 31.09 lakh during the check period from December 1, 2021, to August 20, 2022. During this period, he was posted as Senior Barracks Store Officer with the Military Engineering Services (MES) at Ambala Cantonment.The CBI registered the disproportionate assets case on May 24, 2023, following Pawar’s arrest on August 20, 2022, for allegedly accepting a bribe. Cash and incriminating documents were also recovered from his residences in Ambala Cantonment and Pune.The casePawar joined the Army in 2001 and was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel in 2014. In December 2021, he was posted as Senior Barracks Store Officer at the office of the Commander Works Engineer (CWE), Ambala, where he was responsible for tender-related work. Subedar Major Pradeep Kumar was posted there as a clerk.According to the CBI chargesheet in the bribery case, Pradeep Kumar allegedly misused his official position to ensure that Dinesh Kumar and Pritpal Singh, both electrical goods contractors, received most of the orders issued by the MES in Ambala. He allegedly demanded a bribe of Rs 5 lakh from Dinesh Kumar, director of M/s Mahagouri Electrical Pvt. Ltd., for himself and his senior officers.On August 20, 2022, the CBI caught Pradeep Kumar red-handed while accepting a bribe of Rs 22.48 lakh from Dinesh Kumar and Pritpal Singh. He had allegedly collected Rs 5 lakh for himself, Rs 9.42 lakh for Lieutenant Colonel Pawar and Rs 8.06 lakh for a Colonel who was also posted at CWE, Ambala Cantonment.After apprehending Pradeep Kumar, CBI officers asked him to call Pawar. He did so and informed Pawar that the bribe amount had been received. He also confirmed that the money would be delivered to Pawar’s residence. Pawar allegedly agreed and provided his residential address.Following these instructions, Pradeep Kumar delivered Rs 17.48 lakh to Pawar’s residence. The CBI officers subsequently caught Pawar red-handed with the bribe money. According to the agency, the amount also included the share allegedly meant for the Colonel.When CBI officials asked Pawar to call the Colonel and inform him that the bribe had been accepted on his behalf, Pawar refused. The agency’s team subsequently visited the Colonel’s residence, but he was not there. When contacted, the Colonel said he was in Delhi and subsequently switched off his phone.During the investigation, the CBI found that the Chief Engineer, Chandigarh Zone, had conducted procurement for CWE, Ambala, at its request through the Government e-Marketplace (GeM). On July 14, 2022, two bids were awarded to M/s Mahagouri Electrical Pvt. Ltd., for Rs 1.90 crore and Rs 1.69 crore, respectively.Payments of Rs 5.20 lakh, Rs 79.96 lakh and Rs 1.30 crore were subsequently made to M/s Mahagouri Electrical for the supply of items, excluding GST. A bribe of Rs 22.48 lakh was paid in connection with these payments, the CBI stated in its chargesheet.The CBI filed a chargesheet against Pawar, Pradeep Kumar, Dinesh Kumar and Pritpal Singh.However, the ED found that Rs 20 lakh of the bribe had allegedly been paid on behalf of M/s Mahagouri Electrical, while Rs 2.48 lakh had allegedly been paid on behalf of M/s PEE JAY Enterprises in connection with a contract valued at Rs 58.48 lakh.In addition to Pawar, Pradeep Kumar, Dinesh Kumar and Pritpal Singh, the ED named M/s Mahagouri Electrical, Himanshu Jain, proprietor of M/s PEE JAY Enterprises, and Parveen Jain, the firm’s beneficial owner, as accused in its prosecution complaint.In his statement to the ED, Dinesh Kumar claimed that it was common practice among Commander Works Engineer offices of the MES for contracts to be awarded after the payment of commissions ranging from 30 to 40 per cent, even when the lowest bidder was selected through the GeM portal.