Excelsior Correspondent
RAJOURI, Dec 23: With the arrest of two persons and recovery of rubber stamps of about a dozen senior officers including those from Tourism, PWD (R&B), Revenue, Town Planning and SPCB, Thanna Mandi police managed to unearth a gang involved in preparing fake documents and helping local beneficiaries in managing funds from Tourism Department for raising Paying Guest Houses under Central Scheme in Thanna Mandi, Darhal and Rajouri areas.
The police party led by SDPO Thanna Mandi, Najib-ur-Rehman during checking noticed a new Tata Sumo vehicle without number plate parked on Shahdara Sharief road at Thanna Mandi. The police party got suspicious and during checking found a bag lying in the vehicle besides two files. In the bag police found rubber stamps of several senior officers.
The police also found two files lying in the vehicles on the names of Abdul Majid of Thanna Mandi and Tanveer Hussain, son of Mohd Maqbool of Kot Behrote. These two applicants had applied for construction of Paying Guest Houses with estimated cost of Rs 6.30 lakhs and Rs 7.66 lakhs along Mughal Road in Thanna Mandi. The SDPO said that Tourism Department provides Rs 4.50 lakh per unit under Centrally sponsored scheme and Rs 2 lakh is the subsidy on the project. The owner of the vehicle Waqar Qureshi, son of Mohd Mushtaq Qureshi, resident of Shahdara Sharief in Thanna Mandi was arrested. He was placed under sustained interrogation.
Qureshi confessed that he used to prepare fake documents by forging signatures of various officers including Chief Engineer PWD (R&B) Jammu, Executive Engineer R&B Rajouri, Assistant Director Tourism Rajouri, Town Planner Rajouri-Poonch, Naib Tehsildar and Tehsildar, Forest Officers, Dy Dir FPF, PCB scientist/ Env Engineer and others for the purpose. He claimed to have processed more than 40 such files. Two files were in the police custody. Three more stamps of Programme Officer NSS Govt Degree College Rajouri, President Municipal Committee Rajouri, Head Master Govt Primary School Thandi Kassi, Range Officer Social Forestry Rajouri were also recovered.
The accused managed these stamps from Prakash Stationary, Pacca Danga Jammu. On the disclosure of accused, the police party from Rajouri arrested Jammu based trader Manleshwar Gupta, son of Om Parkash Gupta last evening. The police was looking for two more members of the gang who used to manage cases and make dealing in financial matters with the beneficiaries. Qureshi was guard in FPF. He had also diploma in Architect and also managed license in 2001 vide No. 586.
The police claimed that connivance of some people from Tourism Department Rajouri in this case can not be ruled out. How much funds on forged signatures and fake documents they have managed to siphon out so far is yet to be investigated. The police said that investigation in the case was still in progress.
Director Tourism, Jammu Robin Singh Mehta when contacted said that he was not aware of this matter. He said the department provides funds under the scheme to the people interested in raising guest houses but there are so many formalities to be performed. He said Assistant Director Tourism sends the file to Dy Director Jammu and then it is forwarded to the Directorate for final approval. Mr Mehta however, said that he will initiate an inquiry into the matter and ask his junior officers to identify files and screen them properly before processing. He however, opined that the people playing fraud will be minting money from the innocent people befooling them to manage funds for them, which is not so easy.
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