Who Says Crime Doesn’t Pay: CRIS Tells How !

#Note: Following is an unabridged whistle blower account which has been prima facie found to have sufficient merit to warrant publication by us in National Interest. As always we remain committed to publish views of those persons and organisation who have been identified or named. We feel constrained to publish this as Centre for Railway Information Systems (#CRIS) is backbone of #IndianRailways, and if CRIS systems get compromised, IR will collapse and lead to major economic disruption in the country. Continued protection and rewarding of such #corrupt elements is shocking to say the least. We have in past, given factual and verified accounts provided by whistle blowers from IR, who are in know of activities in CRIS. We appeal to Hon’ble #PrimeMinister to instruct a high level #enquiry in to the issues which have been highlighted by the whistle blower. Failure to act would definitely prove embarrassing as wrong doings have resulted in FIRs being registered.

In our article published on June 5, 2025 titled, “The Fall of CRIS: A Tale of Power, Corruption, and Cover-ups” we had highlighted a troubling case of #Corruption in CRIS, which when sought to be investigated by #RailwayBoard-Vigilance, the Blue Eyed Boy of #SatyaKumar, #CMD/CRIS at his master’s bidding had conveniently misplaced the file. We had also reported that owing to such serious allegations of corruption against the Blue Eyed Boy his tenure in CRIS was refused to be extended by Railway Board.

Shocking details are now emerging that shed further details on wide ranging nature of the case in question, and how the Blue Eyed Boy has been rewarded by Satya Kumar, CMD/CRIS for his misdemeanours.

Also Read Along-with-

Feb. 14, 2025: “Making Circus out of CRIS: Stage Set for Malfeasance, Part-III”

Feb. 13, 2025: “Making Circus out of CRIS: Blatant disregard of the rules, Part-II”

Feb. 12, 2025: “Making Circus out of CRIS-Selection of Satya Kumar: Part-I”

To gain a better perspective into the case and for the benefit of the readers who are not familiar with the case, it is essential to have a brief relook at the facts. We had earlier in our #Trilogy on CRIS in the month of February 2025 highlighted in considerable detail how the advent of Satya Kumar, CMD/CRIS has spelt doom for a reputed and reliable organisation like CRIS. Part-III of the trilogy had highlighted the emergence of the premier partner in crime of Satya Kumar—the Blue Eyed Boy. The two together have orchestrated the most vile organised #loot of the public exchequer that can ever be imagined. As a specific example we had, in our expose of June referred earlier alluded to the PMS contract awarded to a firm called M/s #Prontastic IT Services where rules were violated to waive Liquidated Damages (#LD) imposed on the firm. In #Tender No. 01215073, a ₹35 crore contract was awarded to M/s Prontastic IT Services to implement the new Parcel Management System (#PMS). The project was delayed, and as per procedure, the firm was slapped with a 10% LD/penalty—amounting to ₹3.5 crore.

The firm appealed for a waiver, which, as per the rules, required the Chairman & Managing Director’s approval—unless the Project Group could certify that no financial loss had occurred due to the delay. Certifying no loss due to delay was not possible since PMS was designed to increase revenue by improving parcel logistics, and the delay undoubtedly hurt those gains. As a consequence, the file moved to CMD/CRIS for a final decision. CMD/CRIS Satya Kumar aka #Satya returned the file with frivolous queries to buy bargaining time for negotiating with the firm. The team of #Purchase and #Project was forced to certify no loss, which they refused to oblige. Satya being the bullhead that he is, replaced both the Project head as well as the Purchase head. The new GM of Purchase was no stranger to ambition. Alongside the newly appointed #GM of the #PMS Project, the trio orchestrated a complete reversal of the earlier stance. Despite no new facts or assessments, the note was suddenly updated to state that “no loss” had occurred. The #waiver was granted—this time, without ever returning the file to the CMD’s desk.

Our multiple stories on the goings on in CRIS ensured that the external agencies woke-up and took notice. The Railway Board’s Vigilance Department came knocking, asking for files. The Blue-Eyed Boy ensured that the most crucial file, the one detailing the LD/penalty waiver, had conveniently gone “missing”, vanished without a trace. Blame was sought to be pinned on the Project Group for the disappearance of the file.

In the background, an entirely different story was cooking. The incidence of waiver of LD/penalty was just the tip of the iceberg. The real #scam lay somewhere else – in the way money laundering was being done in the background. An #FIR had been filed in a #Noida Police Station against the firm M/s Prontastic IT Services in the context of this contract by another firm called M/s #VindhyaTeleLinks Ltd. A copy of the #FIR is available with #Railwhispers.

According to the FIR-21.03.2025, M/s Prontastic wanted to procure items and products to be installed in the #PMS contract through M/s #Vindhya TeleLink Ltd., as they did not have readily available sufficient funds with them. It was agreed between the two companies that M/s Vindhya was to supply the required items/ products to CRIS through M/s Prontastic, and in return the Prontastic was to ensure that Vindhya would receive payment from CRIS through the designated Account, which was to have joint control of both the companies. It was also agreed that the payments against #PMS contract was to be first paid to Vindhya and only thereafter, the balance payment was to be transferred to the account of Prontastic. It was also agreed Prontastic would share details of OEMs with Vindhya.

In essence, it was agreed that payments received from CRIS were to remain in the designated #Account in the entrustment and were not to be appropriated by Prontastic for its own use for any reason and in any manner. Accordingly, a designated Account in ICICI Bank Limited, Greater Noida was opened wherein all amount received from CRIS under the PMS contract was to be received. Prontastic thereafter, placed purchase orders upon M/s Vindhya for sale and supply of the item/products while specifically mentioning the name of #OEM from whom products were to be procured. After receipt of the purchase orders, Vindhya claims to have duly supplied the items/products within reasonable given time and accordingly raised its invoices for early payment. Prontastic initially facilitated part payment of ₹5.08 Crore (approx.) which was received in the designated Account. It is alleged in the FIR that M/s Prontastic got this disbursal in favour of Vindhya in order to gain trust and faith of the latter.

However, upon completion of entire deliveries of items/ products, the real game started, which incidentally coincides with the time around which efforts were being made to get the waiver of LD/penalty. It is alleged that Prontastic started avoiding the communications of the Vindhya Telelinks, neither informed nor responded to the call for the balance payments which were to be received from CRIS in the designated account. Vindhya sent repeated reminders and communications to Prontastic seeking receipt of balance payment from CRIS in the designated Account. Prontastic initially did not respond to such requests, but later informed Vindhya that owing to some circular of Railways, they have represented to CRIS for waiver of LD/penalty. Prontastic also informed Vindhya that they were facing financial hardships and fund crisis its cash flow was affected badly, and requested them to bear with the circumstances.

M/s Vindhya claims to have sent numerous reminders, however, M/s Prontastic kept making one or the other false excuses for delay in payment. It is alleged that M/s Prontastic thereafter unnecessarily engaged M/s Vindhya into frivolous communications and in the meantime, received the entire payment from CRIS albeit not in the designated Account but in a separate personal Account of Directors of M/s Prontastic. M/s Vindhya was, though, not informed by M/s Prontastic during these several communications that, in fact, it had already received the entire payment from CRIS in the personal Account. On further enquiry, it was revealed that during the time when Prontastic engaged Vindhya into unnecessary communications, they dishonestly and fraudulently instructed CRIS to disburse the amount in an Account different than the Account which was agreed between the parties as the designated Account to receive entire payment from CRIS.

It has been alleged that M/s Prontastic since the very inception had dishonest and fraudulent intentions and intended not to make payments against delivery of the item/products to M/s Vindhya. They deceived M/s Vindhya in inducing to supply the item/products to CRIS with fraudulent and dishonest intention from the very beginning not to pay the invoice value of the said item/products so delivered. It is further alleged that the intention of the M/s Prontastic was to fraudulently divert the funds meant to be kept in the designated Account. When M/s Vindhya confronted them as to why they received payments from CRIS in its own Account instead of agreed designated account and as to why the fact that they had already received amount from CRIS was not disclosed to M/s Vindhya, M/s Prontastic stopped receiving calls or replying to the notices and correspondences.

It is evident that the FIR (No. 0055/2025) lodged against M/s Prontastic pertains to the offences of cheating, criminal breach of trust as well as misappropriation of property, money laundering and other offences. It is shocking to note that when such a case was going on, outlandish efforts were made to favour the company with waiving penalties to the extent of ₹3.5 Crore without following due procedure. It can be nobody’s case that higher officials in CRIS were not aware of the goings on in respect of the clear case of money laundering that appears to have been made out. Satya Kumar and his Blue Eyed Boy worked in cahoots with the accused company to cause loss to the public exchequer to cause benefit to a private party. The waiver of Liquidated Damages by CMD/CRIS appears to have been a quid-pro-quo in return for making fraudulent payment into personal accounts of the Company Directors. There is every possibility that the stakes were much higher and not just confined to LD/penalty waiver. There is a strong prima-facie case that Satya Kumar, CMD/CRIS and the Blue Eyed Boy colluded with M/s Prontastic to divert government funds without the project being fully and timely completed and thus indulged in #MoneyLaundering. This case does not appear to be just about LD, the way CMD/CRIS facilitated the fraud of misappropriation of funds by diverting payments, instead of making payments to the designated account, rather by making payments to the personal accounts of the company directors, needs to be fully investigated.

Such a fraud of monumental dimensions is unprecedented in the history of CRIS. CMD Satya Kumar and his cronies have sunk CRIS into a cesspool of corruption, and despite multiple exposes by us in this regard, continue to be rewarded by the system. Whoever said that Crime never pays must be turning in his grave right now on noticing the goings on in CRIS.

We had reported earlier that the tenure of the Blue Eyed Boy was about to end and an extension was refused by the Railway Board. It appears that since the #RailwayBoard was aware of the nefarious activities of the Blue Eyed Boy, the extension was refused not just once but twice. However, as we have seen, crime pays in CRIS. Whether Satya Kumar, CMD/CRIS needed the Blue Eyed Boy to continue to support in his ulterior motives or to save him from the clutches of vigilance, or whether the Blue Eyed Boy used extraneous political influence is only a matter of speculation but the surprising fact is that the Railway Board was forced to make a shocking u-turn and revive the dead proposal for extension of tenure. In a shocking development, the extension of tenure of the Blue Eyed Boy was approved with barely a couple of days left for completion—even after earlier having been refused twice. This shows the extent to which money power prevails over all other norms of propriety in the Railway System.

The manner in which CMD/CRIS and the Blue eyed boy have managed the system and the extension despite two earlier refusals will mandate a case study of its own and the IITians. What needs further detailed investigation is the involvement and collusion of these two in the fraud perpetrated by M/s Prontastic. Whether the Liquidated Damages waiver was a quid-pro-quo for fraudulent payments into personal accounts, or whether the fraudulent payments themselves without the completion of the project were part of the spoils shared with CMD/CRIS and the Blue Eyed Boy needs detailed investigation to track the money trail. Since the manner in which these two have managed to dodge a #vigilance-investigation is now in the public domain, and with further new facts relating to money laundering coming to the fore, the time is ripe for ED or CBI, or both to get involved.

Otherwise, all that can be said is Crime does pay in CRIS, and how !!!

Postscript by the Editor:

Very disturbing questions arise from the FIR, namely:

1. Whether the firm that participated in the tender floated by CRIS and got the work had genuine credentials?
2. Whether the firm participated in tender on JV agreement? If it was JV then whether this JV was pre-tender or post-tender JV?
3. If it was JV pre-tender then how the account has been changed without the consent of both the firms? If post-tender JV then how an account which was joint account was allowed to be payment account?
4. It clear that the LD was rightly imposed as firm-so why was it waived off?
5. Is there a link in change of project leadership leading to waiving of LD and granting waiver without referring the file to the MD as was done by previous leadership team?