Rajasthan's Ex-Congress Minister Mahesh Joshi Arrested In Rs 960-Crore Jal Jeevan Mission Scam
Joshi was taken into custody from his residence in Jaipur at 5 AM, following a round of interrogation by the Special Investigation Team.
Published : May 7, 2026 at 10:37 AM IST
|Updated : May 7, 2026 at 12:39 PM IST
Jaipur: Officials of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Thursday arrested former Rajasthan Public Health Engineering Department (PHED) minister Dr Mahesh Joshi in a Rs 960 crore scam involving the 'Jal Jeevan Mission', the Central government's ambitious scheme aimed at providing tap water to every household.
ACB DIG Rameshwar Singh said that Joshi, the former Congress minister, was taken into custody from his residence in Jaipur at 5 AM. The Special Investigation Team, which is probing the scam, arrested him following a round of interrogation.
The case is linked to alleged irregularities in tenders issued under the Jal Jeevan Mission. Investigators allege that two firms, Shri Ganpati Tubewell and Shri Shyam Tubewell, secured contracts by submitting fake experience certificates purportedly issued by IRCON International.
As per the investigation, Shri Ganpati Tubewell allegedly secured contracts worth Rs 859.2 crore while Shri Shyam Tubewell obtained tenders worth Rs 120.25 crore through fraudulent means.
The ACB suspects that Joshi misused his ministerial position and accepted bribes in exchange for facilitating the contracts.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is also conducting an investigation into the Jal Jeevan Mission scam under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The ED had arrested Joshi in this case in April 2025, following which he remained in jail for around seven months. He was granted bail by the Supreme Court on December 3, 2025. In this case, Joshi is accused of accepting bribes in exchange for issuing tenders while serving as the PHED minister. The ACB had registered an FIR against Joshi in 2024.
In connection with the Jal Jeevan Mission scam, the ACB had recently arrested 10 engineers. Subsequently, the ACB also arrested Dr Subodh Agarwal, the then additional chief secretary of the PHED, who had managed to evade the agency for a considerable period. Currently, three accused in this case remain at large and have been declared absconders. The ACB has gathered details regarding their assets and submitted this information to the court. Proceedings to attach their properties are now set to commence.
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