NEW DELHI: Coming down heavily on the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) and the Registrar of Cooperative Societies, Delhi, for letting the Capital's builder mafia hijack the cooperative group housing movement and societies, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday ordered formation of a special investigation team headed by a Deputy Inspector-General (DIG) of the Central Bureau of Investigation to investigate a land scam involving as many as 135 housing societies.

Observing that the scam had occurred "under the nose of the Central Government where the President, the Prime Minister, the Supreme Court and the High Court sit", a Division Bench of the Court comprising Justice Vijender Jain and Justice Sharda Aggarwal directed the CBI Director to set up the special investigation team to probe the case thoroughly.

Directing the investigating agency to file a status report within four weeks on the progress of the investigation, the Bench said it would monitor the probe.

When counsel for the CBI submitted that it was short of manpower to carry out the required investigation, the Bench directed the Secretary, Central Department of Personnel, and the Chief Secretary of the Delhi Government to make available the manpower required by the investigating agency.

Fixing August 31 as the next date for hearing of the case, the Bench said that in the first status report the investigating agency should tell the Court the names and professions of the office-bearers of these 135 housing societies to see whether they were contractors or sub-contractors.

Earlier, the CBI through Superintendent of Police Piyush Anand submitted that the agency had on Monday carried out raids at 77 places across the Capital and recovered truckloads of papers in connection with the scam.

When the officer said that the CBI had lodged four FIRs in this connection, the Bench retorted: "Why four?''

"I order the Director, CBI, to conduct investigation thoroughly in the matters of all the 135 housing societies,'' the Bench ruled.

"The apprehension earlier expressed by the Court that the scam had occurred in connivance with officers of the DDA, the Registrar of Cooperative Societies and the builder mafia has been proved right,'' the Bench observed.

The Bench asked K.C. Mittal, appearing for the petitioner, to assist the Court as an amicus curae in the matter.

The Bench passed the directions on a petition by members of the UNI Employees' Cooperative Group Housing Society accusing two private individuals of hijacking their housing society registered in 1971 fraudulently in connivance with government officials.

Printer friendly page  
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail