{
 "no": 84,
 "id": "case-84",
 "sk": 20130510,
 "year": 2013,
 "date": "May 2013",
 "cat": "Public money",
 "sev": "amber",
 "title": "Railgate. A bribe for a seat on the Railway Board",
 "stamp": "Minister resigned, then became a witness.",
 "human": {
  "v": "Senior appointments in the railways treated as purchasable",
  "est": false
 },
 "cost": {
  "v": "<b>₹90 lakh</b> caught being paid for a Railway Board post",
  "est": false
 },
 "what": "In May 2013 the CBI arrested the Railway Minister's nephew for taking ₹90 lakh as a bribe to fix the appointment of a Member (Electrical) to the Railway Board. The money was caught in transit.",
 "dodge": "Pawan Kumar Bansal refused to resign, then resigned under pressure from his own party rather than on his own initiative. The CBI found no evidence against him and named him as a prosecution witness in the case against his nephew. Nobody has explained how a Railway Board appointment came to have a price, or whether it had one before.",
 "ministers": [
  {
   "n": "Pawan Kumar Bansal",
   "r": "Union Railway Minister; resigned May 2013, later a prosecution witness"
  }
 ],
 "pos": "Bansal denied any knowledge of his nephew's dealings, and the CBI stated it found no evidence of his involvement.",
 "alleg": "The minister's own culpability was <em>alleged, investigated, and not established</em>. The bribe itself was caught in the act.",
 "alt": "Board appointments made through a published, contestable process rather than one worth ₹90 lakh to influence.",
 "resignations": [
  {
   "n": "Pawan Kumar Bansal",
   "office": "Union Railway Minister",
   "when": "May 2013",
   "year": 2013,
   "level": "union",
   "party": "Indian National Congress"
  }
 ],
 "sources": [
  {
   "label": "Business Standard: Bansal named a witness in Railgate",
   "url": "https://www.business-standard.com/article/current-affairs/railgate-bansal-named-as-witness-nephew-architect-of-scam-113070400833_1.html",
   "tier": 2
  },
  {
   "label": "Deccan Herald: no proof of Bansal's role in bribery",
   "url": "https://www.deccanherald.com/india/no-proof-bansals-role-bribery-2269639",
   "tier": 2
  }
 ],
 "caseUrl": "https://whoisresponsible.xyz/case/case-84/"
}