New Delhi, Jun 22 (PTI) The three Delhi government officials who were suspended by Lt Governor V K Saxena for alleged involvement in a scam used to transfer evacuee properties to private entities between 2015 and 2021, official sources said on Thursday.
The Lt Governor has also recommended the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) the suspension of an additional district magistrate in connection with the matter, they said.
Three officers, two sub-divisional magistrates (SDMs) and a deputy secretary at the chief minister’s office were suspended by Saxena on June 21.
They were all posted as SDM Alipur at different times and allegedly passed orders giving away ownership of evacuee land, vested with the Government of India, to private entities, sources said.
“The four officials had given Bhumidari rights of the government land parcels to private entities that involved a scam,” said an official source.
The land parcels in question belonged to one Karmu, son of Rifait in village Jhangola in North Delhi district that was declared evacuee property after its owner shifted to Pakistan, he said.
“The swift and decisive action by the LG to finally put the lid on the blatant land scam going on in the national capital since 2015. He decided to order the suspension of involved officers so that proceedings could be started against them,” sources said.
The suspended officers, Harshit Jain, Prakash Chand Thakur, and Devender Sharma, were ad hoc officers of Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Civil Service (DANICS).
Jain and Sharma were SDMs while Thakur was currently posted as deputy secretary at the chief minister’s office.
Vasant Vihar SDM Harshit Jain and Vivek Vihar SDM Devender Sharma were suspended and disciplinary proceedings ordered against them, sources said.
The LG has also recommended the suspension of the fourth officer Nagender Shekhar Pati Tripathi, who is a selection grade officer currently posted as an ADM, to the Home Ministry which is the competent authority in his case, sources said. PTI VIT NSD
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Source: The Print
