*Non-cooperation from officers in 6 distts still prevails
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU, Feb 4: In the biggest ever land scam of Jammu and Kashmir, which caused loss of thousands of crores of rupees to the exchequer, the State Vigilance Organization (SVO) has completed investigation in four FIRs as proved and indicted 49 persons including two serving IAS officers and many officials of the Revenue Department. However, the General Administration Department (GAD) is acting as stumbling block in presentation of charge-sheet in the court of law by not granting prosecution sanction particularly in those cases wherein influential officers and officials are involved.
Moreover, despite repeated directions from the High Court, there is no proper cooperation from the officers in the offices of six Deputy Commissioners in providing entire record relating to the cases dealt under Jammu and Kashmir State Lands (Vesting of Ownership to the Occupants) Act also named as Roshni Act to the premier investigating agency of Jammu and Kashmir. In this way, they are creating obstacles in completion of investigation in six FIRs.
Highly placed sources told EXCELSIOR that out of 16 FIRs registered in Roshni land scam, which was unearthed by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of India, State Vigilance Organization has completed investigation in four FIRs as proved while as process of obtaining clarifications from Branch Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs) and other concerned quarters is still on in respect of two FIRs.
In six FIRs, not much headway could be made mainly because of the failure of the concerned officers in the offices of the Deputy Commissioners of six districts to furnish the record sought by the State Vigilance Organization while as scrutiny of documents is going on in four other FIRs.
According to the sources, in case FIR No.16/2014 registered at Police Station Vigilance Organization Jammu, the State Vigilance Organization has completed the investigation and indicted 20 persons including O P Kalanderia, the then Deputy Commissioner Udhampur (now retd), Jia Lal Sharma, the then Additional Deputy Commissioner Udhampur (now retd), Virender Slathia, the then Assistant Commissioner Revenue, Udhampur (now retd), Kartar Singh, the then Tehsildar Settlement Udhampur (now retd), Rajesh Sharma, Dr Gurvinder Jeet Singh, Sukhdev Singh, Nagendra Singh Jamwal, the then ACRs of Udhampur, Subash Chander Dogra, Sushil Kesar, Sanjeev Kumar Goswami, Sri Nath Suman, all the then Tehsildars Settlement Udhampur and Sanjay Badyal, the then Tehsildar Udhampur.
Though the names of all the in-service officers and officials were furnished to the General Administration Department for accord of sanction for prosecution as envisaged under Section 6 of the Jammu and Kashmir Prevention of Corruption Act, 2006, the General Administration Department accorded sanction for prosecution of only Ashok Kumar, the then Patwari Halqa Ballian Udhampur.
In respect of other in-service accused public servants namely Dr Gurvinder Jeet Singh, Sukhdev Singh, Nagendra Singh Jamwal, Rajeev Magotra, Subash Chander Dogra, Sushil Kesar, Sanjeev Kumar Goswami, Sri Nath Suman and Sanjay Badyal, the General Administration Department has denied the prosecution sanction but has recommended initiation of Departmental Proceedings.
“The charge-sheet in the case against the then Patwari, retired accused public servants and accused beneficiaries is being produced before the court of competent jurisdiction shortly”, sources informed while questioning the decision of GAD to deny prosecution sanction in case of senior in-service Government servants.
In case FIR No.15/2014 also registered in Police Station Vigilance Organization Jammu, the SVO has indicted nine persons including Hirdesh Kumar Singh, the then District Collector Jammu (presently Commissioner Secretary, Information Technology), Rajinder Singh, the then ACR, R C Mishra, the then Tehsildar Jammu (now retired), Narian Singh, the then Tehsildar (now retd), Amar Singh, the then Naib Tehsildar (now retd), Subash Singh Chib, the then Naib Tehsildar Udhampur, Mohan Lal, the then Girdawar of Katal Batal and Sadiq Ahmed, the then Patwari Katal Batal Nagrota.
Though the SVO had approached the General Administration Department for prosecution sanction against the in-service accused public servants on April 1, 2015, the decision of the GAD is awaited till date, sources said while expressing inability to understand the logic behind delaying prosecution sanction despite case having been proved by the premier investigating agency of the State.
In case FIR No.6/2014, the SVO has indicted seven persons including two serving IAS officers. The accused persons are Sudhanshu Pandey, the then Divisional Commissioner Jammu (presently on Central deputation), Hirdesh Kumar Singh, the then District Collector Jammu (presently Commissioner Secretary, Information Technology), Rajinder Singh, the then ACR Jammu, Narayan Singh, the then Tehsildar Jammu, Girdhari Lal, the then Girdawar Deeli and Anwar Sadotra, the then Patwari Halqa Deeli. Interestingly, Anwar Sadotra is still Patwari of Deeli area.
This case was referred to the General Administration Department on December 31, 2015 for accord of prosecution sanction of in-service public servants but the same is still awaited, sources said, adding “it is also not known whether the GAD has approached the Department of Personnel and Training, Government of India, whose sanction is imperative for launching prosecution against the in-service IAS officers”.
In case FIR No.19/2014 registered at Police Station Vigilance Organization Kashmir, the SVO has indicted 13 persons including Khwaja Farooq Ahmad Renzu, the then Deputy Commissioner Budgam (now retd), Sheikh Mohammad Ayoub, the then Assistant Commissioner Revenue Budgam (now retd), Firdaus Sultan, the then Tehsildar Budgam, Ali Mohammad Malik, the then Naib Tehsildar Budgam, Haji Ghulam Nabi Ganai, the then Girdawar Qanoongo (now retd), Asadullah Baba, the then Patwari Budgam and others.
The case was forwarded to GAD for accord of sanction for prosecution of in-service accused public servants on January 8, 2016 but the approval is still awaited, sources said while disclosing that in FIR No.18 and 16 of 2014, some clarifications have been sought by the SVO’s Central Office from the Branch SSPs. Moreover, initial reports in these two cases are under legal scrutiny in the Central Office.
Sources further revealed that in six FIRs 3/2015, 4/2015, 5/2015, 26/2015, 30/2015 and 31/2015 the officers in the offices of six Deputy Commissioners have not furnished requisite record sought by the State Vigilance Organization despite repeated reminders from the latter.
“The original record pertaining to the beneficiaries of land in Khanabal village of Anantnag district is awaited despite repeated correspondence made in this regard”, sources said. Similarly, despite repeated communication, the record in respect of land in Chadoora area of Budgam district is awaited from the concerned Deputy Commissioner.
Even the officers in the Deputy Commissioner’s Office Srinagar are reluctant to furnish record of the Roshni cases to the SVO despite several requests and reminders made from time to time in this regard.
They further revealed that officers in the offices of Deputy Commissioners of Samba, Udhampur and Jammu are also not cooperating with the SVO despite the fact that furnishing of details of Roshni cases sought by the concerned Branch SSPs is imperative to take the FIRs to the logical conclusion.
“The non-cooperative attitude of the concerned authorities is notwithstanding the fact that State High Court has repeatedly been asking the Deputy Commissioners for extending all cooperation to the SVO in taking the FIRs in the biggest ever land scam of J&K to the logical conclusion”, sources said.
It is pertinent to mention here that first direction in this regard was issued to all the Deputy Commissioners of the State by the then Chief Justice of J&K High Court, Justice M M Kumar in the month of April 2015 while chairing a Division Bench.
“Since the SVO has made considerable progress in several FIRs, it is imperative on the part of the General Administration Department to immediately accord prosecution sanction of in-service Government servants. Similarly, the Deputy Commissioners must ensure that all the relevant record sought by the State Vigilance Organization is made available to the Branch SSPs for prompt completion of probe”, sources stressed.
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