Hooda to be prosecuted in National Herald land case

TROUBLE MOUNTS Haryana guv gives sanction, CBI to file 2nd chargesheet against excm

CHANDIGARH: Haryana governor Satyadeo Narain Arya on Thursday gave sanction to prosecute senior Congress leader and former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda in a case pertaining to restoration of an institutional plot in Panchkula to Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) at old rates. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had in October sought sanction from the state government to prosecute the former chief minister.

Under the amended Prevention of Corruption Act, the investigation agency now has to take prior sanction from the state government to prosecute a former public servant who served in the state government. The sanction was only sought for Hooda by the CBI.

Hooda was the chief minister and chairman of the Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA) when the plot was restored to the AJL in 2005. AJL, a company having many Congress leaders as its directors, publishes the National Herald newspaper.

The sanction to prosecute Hooda paves the way for the CBI to file a chargesheet against him in a court. This would be the second chargesheet that the CBI would file against Hooda. The first one was filed earlier this year in the Manesar land scam. The CBI has been informed about the sanction, said an official.

Describing the governor’s approval as politically motivated, Hooda said the decision to allot the plot to the AJL was taken by HUDA and not by a single individual.

NO ROLE OF OFFICIALS

The CBI found that the government officials had no role in the allotment of plot to the AJL as they had opposed the allotment on the file. HT had in 2016 reported that the BJP government had wrongly named officials in the FIR registered by the Vigilance Bureau. The three officials named in the FIR had written on the file that fresh allotment at current rates can be made, and there was no merit in the AJL’S request for restoration and the case needs to be filed.

Even the law secretary in his opinion said there can be no question of re-allotment or restoration of the plot to the same allottee.

Officials had in writing opposed the restoration of the plot to the AJL but were overruled by Hooda who passed a speaking order to restore it. The 3,500 square metre plot was first allotted to the AJL in 1982 but was resumed by HUDA in 1992.

The state Vigilance Bureau had in May 2016 booked Hooda and three officials – the then chief administrator, HUDA, SS Dhillon, then principal secretary, town and country planning, Shakuntla Jakhu and then administrator, HUDA (headquarters), Vineet Garg for allegedly restoring the resumed plot.

The state government referred the case to the CBI in 2017. The CBI had registered a regular case against Hooda and officials under Sections 409 (criminal breach of trust by a public servant), 420 (cheating), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) and Section 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act (misuse of official position by public servant) against Hooda, the officials and Associated Journals Ltd.