Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Nov 8: Division Bench of State High Court comprising Chief Justice M M Kumar and Justice Mohd Yaqoob Mir today disposed of CMA seeking copy of Demi-Official (DO) letter written by the Minister for Revenue, Raman Bhalla in the Gulmarg land scam case.
The CMA was filed in the much-publicized Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Prof S K Bhalla and Sheikh Mohd Shafi seeking prosecution of senior IAS/IFS/IPS/KAS officers and politicians involved in the corruption cases.
When the PIL came up for hearing, Senior Additional Advocate General Gagan Basotra produced a copy of DO letter dated October 12, 2009 in a sealed cover written by Raman Bhalla, Minister for Revenue, Relief and Rehabilitation to the P L Gupta, Commissioner of State Vigilance Organization wherein Minister asked the Vigilance Commissioner to close FIR No 8/2009 (infamous Gulmarg land scam).
It is pertinent to mention here that in the scam, SVO has already produced challan in the Court of Special Judge Anticorruption, Kashmir against 19 accused including Mehboob Iqbal, the then Divisional Commissioner Kashmir and nine top hoteliers of the Valley.
As per the contents of DO letter, the Minister submitted that the land in question falling under the Gulmarg Tourism Development Authority comes under the purview of Roshni Act and therefore the case FIR 8/2009 VOK may be closed so that work under the Act is taken-up by the authorities concerned.
After hearing Advocate Sheikh Shakeel Ahmed appearing for the PIL, Senior AAG Gagan Basotra for the State, KK Pangotra ASGI for the Union of India and Advocate A H Bhat appearing for the FCI, Division Bench observed, “DO letter of Revenue Minister addressed to Commissioner of Vigilance has been produced in the open Court in terms of earlier order”, adding “the Court see no reason to consider this letter as privilege document”.
Accordingly, the Division Bench directed Bench Secretary to provide a photocopy of DO letter to Advocate Sheikh Shakeel Ahmed, counsel for the petitioners today itself and disposed of CMA. The DB directed the Registry to list this PIL on December 3, 2012.
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