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HPCA row: another govt official arrested
The state vigilance and anti-corruption bureau on Tuesday arrested another government official, who is accused of conniving with the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) in a case of cheating and damage to public property against the cricket body.
The state vigilance and anti-corruption bureau on Tuesday arrested another government official, who is accused of conniving with the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) in a case of cheating and damage to public property against the cricket body.
This has been the second arrest of a government functionary in the case.
“Devi Chand Chauhan, executive engineer, design, with the public works department (PWD), currently posted at the north zone office of the department in Dharamsala, has been arrested in the case,” said a vigilance official, who doesn't want to be identified.
Chauhan was serving on the equivalent post at Dharamsala when the two-storey building of the education department was allegedly demolished by the cricket body.
The vigilance bureau on Tuesday had arrested a retired sub-divisional officer (SDO), MC Katoch, of the department in same case.
The case was registered against the HPCA on October 3. “Chauhan has been accused of conniving with the HPCA and forwarding a report regarding demolition of a government building comprising quarters of Government College, Dharamsala, staff unsafe without verifying the facts,” said the official.
Former SDO Katoch, who was arrested on Tuesday, had declared the building unsafe without getting the survey and technical report of the building. The building, which was located near the main gate of the international cricket stadium, Dharamsala, was demolished in 2008.
The land on which the building stood was later encroached upon by the cricket body.
The vigilance investigation had revealed that BJP MP Anurag Thakur headed HPCA had pleaded in 2008 before the then deputy commissioner, Kangra, that “ramshackle” houses adjoining the cricket stadium were posing a threat to their infrastructure.
Following the request from the HPCA, the Kangra DC convened a meeting at his office on March 14, 2008, which was attended by PWD officials, college authorities and a HPCA office-bearer.
In the meeting, the college principal was directed to give in writing to the PWD to declare the building unsafe.
The then SDO, Katoch, on very next day submitted a report to executive engineer Chauhan, declaring the building unsafe a month before receiving the request from the college authorities.
The college authorities sought the report from PWD to declare the building unsafe after almost a month on April 10, 2008. On April 11, the executive engineer forwarded the report which was without any survey report.
The role of the then college principal, Narender Avasthi, is also under scanner in the case and he has gone underground after his bail plea was rejected by a local court.
HPCA spokesperson bail plea adjourned
The hearing on the anticipatory bail plea of a Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) official in a case of cheating registered against the cricket body was adjourned to November 22 by the additional district and sessions judge of the Indora Circuit Bench. Cricket body spokesman Sanjay Sharma had applied for anticipatory bail on November 16.
Meanwhile, the bail plea of other three HPCA officials, Attar Singh Negi, Surender Thakur and Prem Thakur, was disposed off by the same court. Negi is treasurer of the cricket body while Surender and Prem are vice-president and joint secretary, respectively. The local court also sent a retired PWD official, who was arrested on Tuesday, to two-day police remand.
