State holds back Date’s deputation in view of NH scam investigation

In view of the ongoing investigation into the high-profile National Highway (NH)-74 land acquisition and compensation scam by the Special Investigation Team (SIT), the State Government is holding back the deputation of SIT head who is the senior superintendent of police ( SSP) of Udham Singh Nagar Sadanand Date to the Centre. The Union Government has requested the State Government to relieve Date for his new assignment in the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

The Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat told the journalists on Monday that he has requested the Union Government to let Date remain in Uttarakhand as the investigation by SIT is going on. “The demand of Date’s release for CBI was made last year also after which we pleaded that since he was holding an important assignment, he should be allowed to stay put in Uttarakhand. Similar demand was made about three months ago and again we said that the investigation possibly being completed in two to three months, he should be allowed to stay back in the State till that time. Now, as things stand now, the investigation would get completed in two/ three days,’’ CM said.

In connection with the Rs  300 crore scam, the State Government has given notices to two IAS officers- Pankaj Kumar Pandey and Chandresh Yadav- and asked them to file their reply within seven days. The SIT is learned to have found irregularities in arbitrations done by them in their capacity as District Magistrate of Udham Singh Nagar.

If not satisfied by the explanation to be put forward by these officers, the State Government might take permission from the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievance and Pensions to take punitive action against these IAS officers. At least, two dozen officers, including some Provincial Civil Services (PCS) officers, are now languishing in Jails for their alleged involvement in the multi- core scam that is said to have occurred during the years 2011 to 2016 when work on widening of the Haridwar- Bareilly National Highway (NH – 74) was taking place.

In the scam, the agricultural land was shown as non- agricultural land in the revenue records, resulting in a hefty increase in the value of these lands acquired for the project and corresponding increase in the compensation amounts paid to the landowners for their acquisition.