Lucknow: The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court on Thursday ordered a CBI probe into charges of corruption and irregularities against former chief engineer of Noida authority, Yadav Singh.
The state government had opposed a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the matter.
After hearing the state government, Yadav Singh and Noida Authority, a bench of Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Justice S.N. Shukla said the matter was “serious”, adding that the case was a perfect one to be probed by the CBI.
The court said it had no faith in the one-member Justice Amarnath Verma Commission set up by the Samajwadi Party (SP) government and chided the advocate general for tardy progress in the matter.
The court on Wednesday completed the hearing on a public interest litigation pertaining to alleged corruption and amassing of ill-gotten wealth by Yadav Singh.
The petitioners alleged that many senior officials, bureaucrats and politicians were involved in the dealings of Yadav Singh and nothing short of a CBI probe into the matter could ensure justice.
The high court expressed dissatisfaction that ever since the Justice Verma commission was constituted, all government investigations, including a departmental inquiry, were put in cold storage.
It said it would have been prudent on the part of the state government to recommend a CBI probe into the matter.
The court on December 16, 2014, issued notices to the income tax department, union and state governments, Noida Authority and other parties as to why the case not be handed over to the CBI.
On February 10, 2015, the state government constituted the judicial commission to probe charges of irregularities, misuse of post and corruption against Yadav Singh and asked it to hold the probe within six months.
The government also told the high court about the inquiry panel in the next hearing.
Opposition parties earlier alleged that the tainted chief engineer “managed” the top political leadership of the Samajwadi Party government and hence the latter decided to go slow in the matter.
The Utttar Pradesh government suspended Yadav Singh in the wake of an income tax raid at his residence last year that unearthed crores in cash and jewellery.