By IANS
Lucknow/New Delhi : Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) teams raided a dozen locations across Uttar Pradesh Friday to unearth irregularities in the allotment of 600 high-value plots in Noida town, bordering the national capital.
CBI investigators raided the offices and residences of at least 17 senior and junior officials associated with the allotments made in 2005 under the then Samajwadi Party government headed by Mulayam Singh Yadav.
Apart from the offices of the Noida administration, offices of Lucknow-based Uttar Pradesh Development Systems Corporation (UPDESCO) – the agency engaged to carry out the computerised allotments of plots – were searched by the investigative agency.
“Most of the allotments were made either to the rich or highly influential people, including ministers, MPs, legislators, judges and high officials which naturally aroused suspicion about some internal manipulations,” a CBI source told IANS in state capital Lucknow.
“Three of the plots went to the family members of then Chief Justice of India Y.K. Sabharwal,” the official said.
Allahabad High Court, on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed in 2005, had ordered a CBI inquiry into the allotments. However the Mulayam Singh Yadav government moved a special appeal before the Supreme Court, which stayed the high court order.
The state government had then said it was appointing a judicial commission to look into the complaint of the alleged irregularities.
With the change of government in Uttar Pradesh, the new administration led by Chief Minister Mayawati sought the re-opening of the CBI probe in the allotments. The Supreme Court vacated the stay at the end of October last year.
“Our stand is straight and simple – if irregularities have been committed then the guilty must be brought to book. And which agency can do that in a more impartial manner than CBI?” said Shailesh Krishna, principal secretary to the chief minister.
According to CBI officials in New Delhi, the raids began Friday morning at the office of the Noida administration.
“Raids were conducted at 20 places to probe charges that officials of Noida, UPDESCO and state government entered into a criminal conspiracy in connection with the allotment of residential plots by falsifying electronic records knowingly or intentionally altering the computer ‘source code’ developed for the draw of the lots,” a senior CBI official told IANS.
“The code was altered for framing an incorrect document with certain pre-decided applicants listed as successful applicants under the residential plot scheme for which the draw was held on July 2, 2005,” the official added.
He claimed incriminating documents had been recovered and the raids would continue all of Friday.