Leasing of land to Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust to come under CBI lens
, ET Bureau|
Updated: Nov 02, 2017, 11.43 PM IST
NEW DELHI: A not-for-profit organisation, whose trustees include Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi, is set to come under CBI scanner for leasing of land in alleged violation of rules.
The impending probe into the leasing of 5.3 acres of land to the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust (RGCT) in Haryana during the term of the erstwhile Congress government in the state is part of a larger investigation ordered by the Supreme Court.
The court on Wednesday directed CBI to investigate alleged violations following the then BS Hooda government’s decision in 2009 to acquire 1,400 acre in Gurgaon, of which only 87 acre was eventually acquired by 2012. It has given CBI six months to submit a report on the acquisitions and subsequent release of land. This comes about four years after CAG had slammed the Hooda government for the gram panchayat of Ulhawas village bending the rules to lease land to the trust in violation of state land release policy to set up an eye hospital.
The Hooda government had also come under fire from the Punjab and Haryana high court, which had questioned as to why the matter not be handed over to CBI. The Hooda government had then opposed the HC decision in SC, where the matter remained pending. SC asked the state government, led by Manohar Lal, to supply details of the “beneficiaries” whose land was released midway.
Earlier this week, SC gave a 24-hour notice to the Manohar Lal government to explain as to why the case not be handed over to CBI. Following this, the state government informed the court its willingness to hand over the matter to CBI.
The case dates back to June 2009, when the Hooda government issued a notification to acquire 1,400 acre falling in villages in Badshahpur, Behrampur, Nangli, Ulhawas, Kadarpur and other tehsils of Gurgaon district for development of residential sectors 58 to 63 and residential-commercial sectors 65 to 67. In May 2012, the Hooda government ended up acquiring less than 87 acre, triggering allegations that it illegally released the remaining land to builders.
The remaining land included the 5.3 acres leased by the gram panchayat of Ulhawas village to RGCT. In a report in 2013, the CAG said: “Gram Panchayat which was the owner of the land had not approached the government for the release of the land at any stage but the government changed the relevant rules on November 8, 2010. The department granted CLU (change of land use) for establishing eye hospital by the trust in violation of department plan as the area had been earmarked demarcated as residential area.”
The area falling under the land proposed to be acquired included shamlat (village common land) of the gram panchayat. However, after issuance of Section 4 notification (state’s announcement to acquire land), the trust urged the panchayat for leasing 5.3 acre for opening an eye hospital for 33 years. Following this, the panchayat passed a resolution for leasing the land to the trust. The Hooda government approved the panchayat’s proposal on December 14, 2009, and land was leased at a rate of Rs 3 lakh per acre, with progressive increase of 5% every year. The lease agreement was signed in January 2010. The trust then approached the Hooda government for change of land use. The proposal for release of land was submitted on December 3, 2010, and was granted on the same day, the CAG report said.
The impending probe into the leasing of 5.3 acres of land to the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust (RGCT) in Haryana during the term of the erstwhile Congress government in the state is part of a larger investigation ordered by the Supreme Court.
The court on Wednesday directed CBI to investigate alleged violations following the then BS Hooda government’s decision in 2009 to acquire 1,400 acre in Gurgaon, of which only 87 acre was eventually acquired by 2012. It has given CBI six months to submit a report on the acquisitions and subsequent release of land. This comes about four years after CAG had slammed the Hooda government for the gram panchayat of Ulhawas village bending the rules to lease land to the trust in violation of state land release policy to set up an eye hospital.
The Hooda government had also come under fire from the Punjab and Haryana high court, which had questioned as to why the matter not be handed over to CBI. The Hooda government had then opposed the HC decision in SC, where the matter remained pending. SC asked the state government, led by Manohar Lal, to supply details of the “beneficiaries” whose land was released midway.
Earlier this week, SC gave a 24-hour notice to the Manohar Lal government to explain as to why the case not be handed over to CBI. Following this, the state government informed the court its willingness to hand over the matter to CBI.
The case dates back to June 2009, when the Hooda government issued a notification to acquire 1,400 acre falling in villages in Badshahpur, Behrampur, Nangli, Ulhawas, Kadarpur and other tehsils of Gurgaon district for development of residential sectors 58 to 63 and residential-commercial sectors 65 to 67. In May 2012, the Hooda government ended up acquiring less than 87 acre, triggering allegations that it illegally released the remaining land to builders.
The remaining land included the 5.3 acres leased by the gram panchayat of Ulhawas village to RGCT. In a report in 2013, the CAG said: “Gram Panchayat which was the owner of the land had not approached the government for the release of the land at any stage but the government changed the relevant rules on November 8, 2010. The department granted CLU (change of land use) for establishing eye hospital by the trust in violation of department plan as the area had been earmarked demarcated as residential area.”
The area falling under the land proposed to be acquired included shamlat (village common land) of the gram panchayat. However, after issuance of Section 4 notification (state’s announcement to acquire land), the trust urged the panchayat for leasing 5.3 acre for opening an eye hospital for 33 years. Following this, the panchayat passed a resolution for leasing the land to the trust. The Hooda government approved the panchayat’s proposal on December 14, 2009, and land was leased at a rate of Rs 3 lakh per acre, with progressive increase of 5% every year. The lease agreement was signed in January 2010. The trust then approached the Hooda government for change of land use. The proposal for release of land was submitted on December 3, 2010, and was granted on the same day, the CAG report said.
