Supreme Court to hear PF scam accused Asthana's case today

New Delhi, Oct 20 (ANI): The Supreme Court will hear today a petition seeking an independent investigation into the mysterious death of Ashutosh Asthana, the main accused in multi-crore provident fund scam.

The petition filed by Nahar Singh Yadav, secretary of the Ghaziabad Bar Association, wants the viscera of Asthana to be examined by an independent agency outside Uttar Pradesh.

Yadav alleged foul play in the death of Asthana and pointed out that the key accused in the PF scam had repeatedly expressed apprehension about the threat to his life.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is probing the case since September 2008.

Earlier this year, the CBI had exposed the misuse of provident fund savings of up to twenty-three crore rupees of class III and IV employees of Ghaziabad courts for the personal luxuries of judges.

In his statement before a CBI court in September last year Asthana had claimed that thirty-six judges had supported the scam.

According to CBI sources, about 540 assorted slips, bills, pieces of papers, sketches were recovered from a carpenter. These relate to purchase of various raw materials for furniture items during last seven years.

It was also alleged that Asthana picked up forty-three taxi bills of judges and paid it from the provident fund money.

The Supreme Court entrusted the responsibility of the daunting probe on the Crime Bureau of Investigation after the Uttar Pradesh police failed in the task of investigating thirty-six judges. (ANI)