STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Special Judge Anticorruption Jammu A.K Koul on Friday awarded two years rigorous imprisonment to Sita Ram the then Sr.Assistant JDA and Kuldeep Kumar the then helper in JDA in corruption case.
According to the VOJ case that the instant case can be traced from the seized record of Jammu Development Authority Jammu (JDA) and the Joint Surprise Check (JSC) conducted by team of officers of Vigilance on the basis of a complaint. It was on 15th June, 1994, an application was submitted to JDA by one Sat Paul Sharma (herein after referred to as allottee) for allotment of a plot of land measuring 20 feet x 40 feet in Digiana Housing Colony. The request of the allottee fructified and plot No.63, measuring 20 x 40 feet, was allotted to him in Digiana Housing Colony vide JDA letter No. JDA/EWS/DC-228/63 dated 13th December, 1985 (mark-SP/2). The allottee had deposited an amount of Rs. 1000/- vide GR No.000001 dated 8th July, 1984, towards part premium and he was required to pay a further premium of Rs. 2500. In response to the allotment order so issued in his favour, the allottee submitted a bank draft amounting to Rs. 2500/- towards the remaining premium vide his letter dated 15th January, 1986 (Ext-P6/2). Notwithstanding the fulfillment of condition of payment of premium of Rs. 2500 the possession of the allotted plot could not be handed over to the allottee on account of some legal dispute and so in lieu of the plot No.63 allotted to him in Digiana Housing Colony, plot No.5 measuring 16.6 feet x 30 feet, in phase-IV of Housing Colony Paloura was allotted to the him vide order No.JDA/DC-Paloura/678 dated 11th December, 1995, at a premium of Rs.9900-. Since the allottee had deposited Rs. 3500 already as premium for Plot at Digiana, which amount was lying with JDA and a further sum of Rs. 3205 was added to the premium so deposited by the allottee as interest which had accrued on deposited amount and accordingly the premium plus interest (Rs.3500+3205) was set off against the total premium payable by the allottee and so he was required to deposit Rs3195 (9900-6705) only within thirty days. The allottee could not do so; consequently the possession of the plot could not be handed over to him.
After hearing CPO Harminder Singh of the VOJ whereas Advocate MK Gupta for the accused, Special Judge Anticorruption Jammu A.K Koul observed that The accused in this case worked on their nefarious plan for sometime and did everything at their command, to take it to its logical end but ultimately they failed to do so, though in the culminating phase but they never thought of the consequences which they may have to face at the end of the day.
It is trite that holders of public office are entrusted with certain duties and powers, which duties have to be discharged, and powers exercised, in the public interest only and any breach thereof results in an abuse to the public office.
Any public servant deviating from the path of rectitude runs the risk of loosing the public trust to be followed by penal consequences. So ordinarily the accused do not deserve any sympathy so for as the quantum of punishment is concerned but then there is still a mitigating factor in the sense that one of the accused is around 66 years old and another one is about 45 years. The accused as such deserve a slight leniency while deciding the commensurate punishment to be imposed. With these observations Court ordered that each accused will undergo an imprisonment for a period of two years and a fine of Rs. 5000/- each, for each of the offences, u/ss 468 and 471 r/w 120-B RPC and further ordered that Each of the accused will undergo a further imprisonment of two years and shall pay a fine of Rs. 5000/- each, for commission of offence u/s 5(2) JK P.C.Act. Court further clarified that both the sentences shall run concurrently.