95 housing societies in CBI net

REAL ESTATE

Bureau seeks Centre'societies.

The CBI today informed the Delhi High Court that it had sought the Union government's permission to prosecute a joint secretary level officer for his alleged involvement in Rs 4,000-crore co-operative group housing societies scam in the national capital.

While filing the final status report of the probe into the scam, CBI counsel Harish Gulati told a division bench comprising Justice Vijender Jain and Justice Rekha Sharma that the agency had established prima facie involvement of the official, who had served as the Registrar Cooperative Societies (RCS) in the Delhi Government, in the illegal revival of, at least, three of the four defunct societies. It had also sought the government's permission to file a preliminary enquiry (PE) against the senior official.

The CBI told the court that so far cases had been registered against 95 such societies for their misconduct. However, no criminality was made against 22 housing societies and opinion against one society could not be made as the matter was sub judice, he said.

The court was also informed that efforts were being made to declare former RCS Narayan Diwakar and certain other officials as proclaimed offenders since they had been dodging the agency sleuths after cases have been registered in the multi-crore scandal.

While adjourning the case till February 13, the court asked the DDA to give the list of the societies which were given land since 2000.

Hearing the petition of Yogi Raj Group Housing Societies, the court observed that the objective of cooperative movement was defeated due to the nexus between corrupt officials and the builders.

"It is the element of profit-making in view of difference of market value of land and the value on which land is allotted to the societies has resulted in the nexus of builders and officials to reap gain by unholy alliance,'' the court had said in its earlier order.