Shimla, September 15: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Sunday arrested suspended assistant sub-inspector Pankaj Sharma for allegedly tampering with key evidence in the death of Vimal Negi, former Chief Engineer of the Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (HPPCL). This marks the first arrest since the Himachal Pradesh High Court transferred the case to the central agency in May.
Negi, who had gone missing earlier this year, was found dead in the Gobind Sagar lake in Bilaspur on March 18. A pen drive recovered from his body later became a central piece of evidence in the case. According to investigators, Sharma took the device into his possession without reporting it, and later formatted it, erasing its data.
A CBI team of 10 members raided Sharma’s residence in Ghumarwin, Bilaspur district, on Sunday before taking him into custody. Officials said he will be presented before a court.
Sharma had earlier been questioned multiple times by the special investigation team (SIT) formed by the CBI. The probe revealed that on the day Negi’s body was discovered, Sharma was in Bilaspur and had collected the pen drive. In an audio recording made by a local fisherman, Sharma was allegedly heard asking, “What to do with the pen drive?”
Negi’s death had triggered widespread anger among his family and colleagues. Employees of HPPCL staged large demonstrations outside the corporation’s office, while the family alleged that Negi was murdered after being subjected to mental harassment by senior officials.
The Himachal Pradesh police initially registered an FIR and set up an SIT to investigate, but Negi’s family expressed dissatisfaction with the progress of the probe and pressed for a CBI inquiry.
