Earlier, the CAG had alleged that Vadra’s firm was one of the nine companies in the area which had not submitted documents on financial adequacy.
BJP had made land deals under the previous Congress regime in Haryana a major poll issue during last year’s election alleging that land rules were relaxed to favor a few including Vadra, the son-in-law of Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
The state government has appointed a retired Judge of Delhi High Court, Justice S N Dhingra, as one-man Commission of Inquiry to probe issues concerning the grant of license(s) for developing commercial colonies by the Department of Town and Country Planning, Haryana, to some entities in Sector 83, Gurgaon.
The Commission headed by Justice Dhingra would also probe subsequent transfer or disposal of the lands, allegations of private enrichment, ineligibility of beneficiaries under the rules, and other connected matters, bringing Vadra land deal under the scanner.
“The Commission will submit its report to the government as soon as possible but not later than six months from the date of its first sitting,” an official spokesman said here tonight.
Notably, “undue favors” to builders, including Vadra’s Skylight Hospitality, by the Haryana government during the Congress regime had come under attack from the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG).
The CAG report, tabled in the Haryana Assembly in March, had alleged that because of Vadra, rules were also relaxed for other developers and builders, including real estate major DLF Universal Ltd.
Underlining that “the possibility of extending undue benefit to particular applicants cannot be ruled out,” the report had mentioned how a commercial license was granted to Sky Light Hospitality merely after reading Vadra’s name in the directors’ column.
The development came a day after a senior Minister in the Khattar government, Ram Bilas Sharma, had said that it would appoint a Commission of Inquiry to be headed by a retired Supreme Court judge to probe alleged irregularities during the 10-year of the Congress rule, including controversial land deals involving Vadra.
In 2012, senior IAS officer Ashok Khemka, in his capacity as Director General of Consolidation and Land Holding Department, had canceled the mutation of the land deal in Gurgaon involving real estate giant DLF and Vadra.
The probe into alleged questionable land deals of Vadra was a major election issue in the run-up to the Parliamentary and Assembly elections in 2014, with even Prime Minister Narendra Modi aggressively raising the issue during poll rallies.
Another senior Minister of the Manohar Lal Khattar government, Anil Vij had taken a swipe at Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi over his “suit-boot ki sarkar” barb, tweeting “that the scams of Rahul Gandhi’s suited-booted (well dressed) brother-in-law Robert Vadra will definitely be probed.”
The Justice Dhingra Commission will make an inquiry and give its findings and recommendations with respect to the matters including the circumstances under which license(s) for development of commercial colonies were granted to some entities in Sector 83, Gurgaon and whether the entities were eligible for grant of license(s) as per the applicable laws, rules, circulars, notifications, guidelines etc. prevalent in Haryana.
The Commission shall also inquire whether the transfer of licenses by the original licensee within a short period of time to other entities was violative of law, rules, circulars, notifications and/or guidelines etc; and whether the Town and Country Planning Department had contemplated the transactions that had taken place before or after the grant of license, particularly with reference to the loss of revenue to government.
Further, it will recommend measure(s) which may be adopted to meet the ends of justice, particularly with a view to take corrective action to prevent loss of revenue to the public exchequer and also prevention of undue private enrichment at the cost of the public exchequer in such cases in the future; to consider such other matters, including, complaints given by different individuals, political parties and also the Comptroller and Auditor General reports etc. on the subject.
Also, it will give findings and recommendations to meet the ends of justice, particularly relating to allegations of criminal conspiracy, criminal misconduct and undue private enrichment, if any and the role of public servants and private individuals therein; and to recommend remedial measures, for systemic improvement, with a view to prevent loss of revenue to the public exchequer and undue private enrichment in future. -PTI
