Fayaz Bukhari
Srinagar, July 10: In a major land scam, the Revenue Department, without any Cabinet nod, has transferred over 312 kanals of State land to a private party that has dubious past record against which cases are registered in Crime Branch and Vigilance Organization.
The 312 kanals and 5 marlas of State at village Bain Bajal, Jammu has been transferred by the Revenue Department on fast track basis to Jammu and Kashmir Housing Corporation Limited and the file has not gone to Cabinet for the approval.
As per the laid down procedure the proposal was to be put before the Cabinet as the ministry has no competence for transfer of such a huge track of land. The land transfer by the Revenue Department was done in just 20 days from the day proposal was sent by the Deputy Commissioner, Jammu, A K Sahu.
Sources said that the transferred land belongs to Jammu Development Authority (JDA). The land was with the JDA since 1974. However, Vice Chairperson JDA, Shushma Chouhan, told Excelsior that the 312 kanals and 5 marlas land at Bain Bajal is State land and it may be JDA land but as per records of the JDA it has not been transferred to the Authority.
A land transfer order (Rev/S/142 of 2014 dated 19-06-2014) issued by the Commissioner Secretary Revenue Department, Vinod Kaul, reads: “As recommended by the Deputy Commissioner, Jammu vide his letter No. DCJ/SQ/CHCL/Bain Bajal/2014-15/558 dated 29-05-2014 and keeping in view the pressing public demand for proper and modern housing facilities at affordable prices and also taking into consideration that such huge housing demand can’t be addressed by Government due to financial constraints, sanction is here by accorded to the transfer of State land measuring 312 kanals and 5 marlas situated in village Bain Bajal, Tehsil and district Jammu on lease for a period of 40 years in the first instance in favour of the Jammu and Kashmir Housing Corporation Limited subject to the payment of premium fixed by Deputy Commissioner (District Collector), Jammu as per prevailing potential value of the land and ground rent as admissible under rules…”
The 312 kanals and 5 marlas land transferred bears Khasra numbers 3, 5, 23, 24, 25, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 36, 37, 44, 45, 46, 48, 57, 62, 447, 215 and 216 with land measuring 20 kanals, 14 marlas; 55 kanals; 13 kanals, 5 marlas; 10 kanals, 19 marlas; 8 kanals, 18 marlas; 12 kanals, 5 marlas; 4 kanals, 18 marlas; 6 kanals, 4 marlas; 15 kanals, one marlas; 4 kanals, 11 marlas; 2 kanals, 9 marlas; 2 kanals, 5 marlas; 8 kanals, 9 marlas; 43 kanals, 12 marlas; 4 kanals, 5 marlas; 5 kanals, 18 marlas; 6 kanals, 10 marlas; 19 kanals, 2 marlas; 11 kanals, 11 marlas; 21 kanals, 12 marlas and 34 kanals, 17 marlas respectively.
Deputy Commissioner, A K Sahu, told Excelsior that he has not seen the Revenue Department order about land transfer yet.
Divisional Commissioner Jammu, Shantmanu, told Excelsior that as per the procedure such proposal has to be rooted through Divisional Commissioner of the region. “We would have given our recommendations as per the merit but we were not in the loop”, he said adding “since this land transfer order has no cabinet sanction, it is not valid”.
The land was transferred to the Jammu and Kashmir Housing Corporation Limited despite dubious record of the Corporation. According to the Vigilance Commission report the Corporation has taken huge loans from LIC and HUDCO with the State Government as guarantor. The report says that the Corporation uses middlemen and brokers to procure land who inflate the cost of land causing huge loss to the State exchequer.
The report says: In village Thalori district Jammu, the middlemen paid Rs 5.40 lakh to the owners for land measuring 20.11 kanals and within a few days sold it to the Corporation for Rs 61.65 lakhs. A case in Crime Branch is registered against this (FIR 51/2003 PS Crime Branch). 214 kanals of land for the Humhama Colony (Friends Enclave) was purchased by the middleman for an amount of Rs 4.95 crore, the Corporation bought it for Rs 8.56 crore within a week from the middleman. The difference was shared by the officials of the Corporation and the middleman.”
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