Sonepat-Kharkhoda IMT land case | |
---|---|
Court | Supreme Court of India |
Full case name | Sonepat-Kharkhoda Industrial Model Township land scam case |
Decided | 4 February 2014 [1] |
Case history | |
Subsequent action(s) | CBI inquiry |
Keywords | |
Political scams in India |
Sonepat-Kharkhoda Industrial Model Township land case being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Bhupinder Singh Hooda. [2] [3] This under-investigation scam pertains to acquisition of 700 acre land in 3 villages near Kharkhoda in Sonepat district for the Industrial Model Township.. [2] Punjab and Haryana High Court in March 2013 and the Supreme Court of India in May 2016 had cancelled the government's decision to release land to the private builder. [4] Two senior officials in then Chief Minister Hooda's office were indicted for allegedly favouring the developers. [4] Subsequently, in 2018 the Government of Haryana referred the case to CBI to investigate the against Hooda and others. [2]
There are a total of 6 CBI cases and several other vigilance department investigations against Hooda underway. [2] Central Bureau of Investigation is investigating several scams, mostly related to illegal land grab, that took place during his rule in Haryana. These investigations include the Gurugram-Manesar IMT land scam, Robert Vadra DLF land grab scam, Gurugram Rajiv Gandhi Trust land grab scam, Garhi Sampla Uddar Gagan land scam, Panchkula-HUDA Industrial plots allotment scam, AJL-National Herald Panchkula land grab scam, Haryana Forestry scam case and Haryana Raxil drug purchase scam. He has been already chargesheeted in the Manesar-Gurugram land scam, while other cases are still under investigation (c. March 2018). [5] [2] Hooda was acquiring land from poor, illiterate farmers at a low rate in the name of "public interest" only to later license this to builders after granting out-of-turn favors that helped the land value increase exponentially. During his 10-year rule as Chief Minister, Hooda, licensed a massive 24,825 acres of land compared to just 8,550.32 acres by successive Chief Ministers in the 23 years preceding Hooda rule. [6]
"The state's power of eminent domain was abused to force farmer-landowners to sell their lands to private colonizer. The licences became the basis subsequently to release land causing wrongful benefits to the private colonizer."
Ashok Khemka, a senior Indian Administrative Service officer in of Haryana known for exposing corruption and for cancelling the mutation of Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra's illegal land deal in Gurgaon, [7] [8] [9] had written to Chief Minister and Chief Secretary of Haryana to seek the CBI investigation, with the findings that both Rohtak and Sonipat land scams were more blatant than the Manesar scam. [4] In 2005, Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC) notified 885 acres for acquisition for housing colony for industrial workers in sectors 59 and 60 of Sonipat, out of which 300-acre land was illegally released to a private builder. [4]
418 acres in Sonipat was released from acquisition in the same way as it was done in Gurugram-Manesar IMT land scam Manesar during Hooda’s administration. [1] 642 acres of land in 5 villages was notified for acquisition for developing residential and commercial sectors, by Haryana Urban Development Authority, and a notification was issued on 16 January 2004 to acquire 623.70 acres resulting in sales of land by farmers to builders at throwaway prices under the threat of acquisition. [1] Once 418 acre of notified land was acquired by builders at throwaway prices, this was denotified and released from the acquisition, resulting in the illegal windfall gains for the builders at the expense of farmers. [1] [4]
"Out of more than 600 acres of land decided to be acquired for that purpose, more than 418 acres of land already stands released in favour of the private builders. Colourable exercise of power for benefit of private builders in whose favour the land ... has been released after the issuance of Section 6."
Subsequently, in March 2018 the Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar BJP's Government of Haryana referred the case to CBI to conduct further investigation against Hooda and others. [10] [3] [11] [2] Supreme Court had also ordered Haryana Government to take action on the Dhingra Commission's report, set up to investigate grant of land licences, so that "pending issues could be cracked". [1]
Bhupinder Singh Hooda is an Indian National Congress politician who is the current Leader of the Opposition in Haryana Legislative Assembly. He also served as the Chief Minister of Haryana from 2005 to 2014.
Sonipat district is one of the 22 districts of Haryana state in North India. Sonipat town is the district headquarters. It is a part of National Capital Region. It is bordered by Delhi, Panipat, Rohtak, Jind, Jhajjar and Baghpat.
Sonipat is a planned industrial city & administrative headquarter in Sonipat district of Haryana state of India. It comes under the National Capital Region and is around 44 kilometres (27 mi) from New Delhi. It lies 214 km southwest of Chandigarh, the state capital. The Yamuna River runs along its eastern boundary.
Delhi Land & Finance is a commercial real estate development company. It was founded by Chaudhary Raghvendra Singh in 1946 and it is based in New Delhi, India. DLF has developed residential colonies in Delhi such as Model Town, Rajouri Garden, Krishna Nagar, South Extension, Greater Kailash, Kailash Colony, and Hauz Khas. DLF builds residential, office, and retail properties.
Rao Inderjit Singh is an Indian politician and a Minister of State in the Government of India. He is also a member of the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament. He represents the Gurgaon constituency in Haryana and is a member of Bharatiya Janata Party.
Kharkhoda is a city and municipal committee in Sonipat district in the Indian state of Haryana and is a part of National Capital Region (NCR). In Kharkhoda Chhapadeshwar Mahadev Mandir is very popular within the connected villages. At the time of Maha Shivratri festival a large number of tourists comes for visiting the temple. Due to the proximity of UT of Delhi, there is a lot of scope of industrial and residential development in the area. Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation acquired 3,200 acres of land to develop Industrial Model Township (IMT). Western Peripheral Expressway (KMP) is just 1 km and Delhi–Amritsar–Katra Expressway is 5 km away from the city. On 28 August 2022 Shri Narendra Modi laid foundation stone of Maruti Suzuki's new manufacturing plant in Kharkhoda. Khanda village of Kharkhoda block have a statue of Baba Banda Singh Bahadur which was inaugurated by CM of Haryana Manohar Lal Khattar on Shaurya Diwas celebrated in Khanda, Sonipat.
The Western Peripheral Expressway (WPE) or Kundli–Manesar–Palwal Expressway, is an operational 6-lane, 135.6 km (84.3 mi)-long Expressway in the Haryana state of India. Along with the Eastern Peripheral Expressway, the Western Peripheral Expressway is expected to divert more than 50,000 heavy vehicles away from Delhi, which will help to maintain good air quality in Delhi. Western Peripheral Expressway along with Eastern Peripheral Expressway completes the largest Ring Road around Delhi. There are 10 tolled entries and exits, from north to south - Kundli, Kharkhoda, Bahadurgarh, Badli, Fartukhnagar, Panchgaon, Manesar, Taoru, Sohna & Palwal. Toll rate notified in December 2018 is INR1.35 per km for cars, INR2.18 per km for light motor vehicles, INR4.98 per km for trucks and buses, and two wheelers are not permitted on the expressway.
Manesar is a town and municipal corporation, known as New Gurugram City in the Gurugram district of the state of Haryana, India and a part of the National Capital Region (NCR) of Delhi. It is an Industrial Model Township home to factories and industrial activity from multinational corporations.
Haryana, formed on 1 November 1966, is a state in North India. For the administrative purpose, Haryana is divided into 6 revenue divisions which are further divided into 22 districts. For Law and Order maintenance, it is divided into 5 Police Ranges and 4 Police Commissionerates.
Ashok Khemka is an Indian civil service bureaucrat. He is an Indian Administrative Service officer of 1991 batch. He is best known for cancelling the mutation of Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra's illegal land deal in Gurgaon. As of January 2023, he has been transferred 55 times in 30 years by state governments after he exposed corruption in the departments he was posted in. He is a whistleblower of several scams that took place under Bhupinder Hooda's regime, including the Robert Vadra DLF land grab scam, Sonepat-Kharkhoda IMT land scam case, and Garhi Sampla Uddar Gagan land scam. Ashok Khemka is Haryana's second-most transferred bureaucrat after another retired IAS officer, Pradeep Kasni, who was transferred 71 times in 35 years.
Rail transport in the state of Haryana, India, is conducted by five rail divisions in three zones: the North Western Railway zone, Northern Railway zone, and North Central Railway zone. The Diamond Quadrilateral high-speed rail network, Eastern Dedicated Freight Corridor, and Western Dedicated Freight Corridor pass through Haryana.
AJL-National Herald Panchkula land grab scam case, allegedly against Bhupinder Singh Hooda currently in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, is under investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED). This case pertains to Hooda's alleged role for misusing his position as then Chief Minister of Haryana to cause wrongful gains to the Associated Journals Limited (AJL) and corresponding loss to the Government of Haryana, by illegally allotting a government plot of land worth several crores rupees (billions) to AJL for INR 59 lakh. Then Chief Minister, Hooda, was also the chairman of HUDA, a government entity which re-allotted the plot to AJL in 2005 in violations of rules and against the advice of the HUDA officials. Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar's BJP government of Haryana transferred the case to CBI, and CBI filed the FIR in April 2016. CBI booked Hooda for criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust, cheating and misuse of official position by public servants. AJL, which also owns National Herald, is controlled by the Indian National Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi among others.
Gurugram-Manesar Industrial Model Township land grab scam case pertains to the chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and 33 others for the Manesar Industrial Model Township land acquisition scam. This scam resulted in INR1500 crore loss to the farmers of Manesar and neighbouring village in Gurugram district whose 688 acre land was being acquired at a low rate for "public purpose". This land was later licensed to real estate companies after granting them out of term favours and concessions. Private builders grabbed 400 acres land from farmers at throwaway price based on the threat of acquisition by the government. Once this land was bought by the builders, Hooda government released this land from the acquisition process in the favor of builders instead of the original owners. Market value of this 400 acre land was nearly INR4 crore per acre or total INR1600 crore, which was acquired by the builders at only INR100 crore, causing a loss of INR1500 crore to innocent farmer owners of Manesar, Naurangpur and Lakhnoula villages.
The Rohtak-Garhi Sampla Uddar Gagan Model Township land grab case pertains to illegal acquisition and licensing of 850.88 acres land under Bhupinder Singh Hooda's rule as the Chief Minister of Haryana. Hooda acquired land from illiterate poor farmers at a throwaway prices in the name of "public interest" and later licensed this land to builders by granting them out-of-turn favors, which resulted in exponential increase in the land value, causing gains to big builders. HUDA issued notification on 11 April 2002 for acquiring 850.88 acres land for residential and commercial development in Sector 27-28 of Rohtak However, which was later reduced to acquire 441.11 acre on 8 April 2003. A private builder, Uddar Gagan Properties Limited, was granted license by Hooda' government to develop a colony across 280 acres of the released land [excluded from government acquisition], thus accruing illegal gains to private middlemen. HUDA issued notification on 11 April 2002 for acquiring 850.88 acres land for residential and commercial development in Sector 27-28 of Rohtak However, which was later reduced to acquire 441.11 acre on 8 April 2003. A private builder, Uddar Gagan Properties Limited, was granted license by Hooda' government to develop a colony across 280 acres of the released land [excluded from government acquisition], thus accruing illegal gains to private middlemen. Uddar Gagan is owned by Zee.
Haryana Raxil drug purchase scam case is a case under investigation by the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) against Bhupinder Singh Hooda for the illegal purchase of Raxil fungicide which resulted in INR80 crore loss to the government. This scam, initially exposed by Ashok Khemka, is also pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
Haryana Forestry scam case is a multi-crore fake plantation scam allegedly involving Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Kiran Chaudhary and others where government money was embezzled. In 2009, this scam was exposed by the whistleblower, Sanjiv Chaturvedi, Ramon Magsaysay Award-winner Indian Forest Service officer with then Government of Haryana, who filed a case in September 2012 to seek Supreme Court's instructions to CBI to investigate the case. Earlier, Haryana Government had suspended him in 2007 for acting against illegal felling of trees and poaching in Saraswati Wildlife Sanctuary, but his suspension was revoked by the President in 2008 and the chargesheet was overturned in 2011 on an appeal against the decision of Haryana government. An inquiry committee of the Ministry of Environment & Forest (MoEF) found Chaturvedi's allegations against Haryana government true, preferred an inquiry by Central Vigilance Commission and by CBI into dubious role of certain highly placed politicians and civil servants. CBI, in its reply to CVC, found Chaturvedi's allegations against then Haryana Government creditable enough for an independent inquiry. As per the rules, CBI can not undertake suo motu investigation, only state government, high court or supreme court can ask CBI for it.
DLF land grab case is a case related to 50 acre land grab in 2013 in Amipur village of Haryana during the Congress' Bhupinder Singh Hooda government, for which Robert Vadra, Hooda and DLF are being investigated by the CBI. Hooda's generosity towards land sharks and builders caused huge losses to farmers and Haryana Government. Consequently, there are Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiries and court cases against him related to shady land deals. Those deals include the allotment of a highly subsidised land and change in land use license for his relatives and influential friends connected to Indian National Congress, such Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra. Jitesh Vadra made illegal gains of over INR50 crore from this land deal within few months in 2008. CBI has filed an 80,000 page long chargesheet in the court related to this case and Manesar land scam case.
Gurugram Rajiv Gandhi Trust land grab case against Robert Vadra and Bhupinder Singh Hooda is being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as per Supreme Court of India's order. In the Gurugram Rajiv Gandhi Trust land grab scam between 2004 and 2014, then Government of Haryana administration of Indian National Congress's Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, had handed over panchayat land to the Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust in the name of public interest use, resulting in this trust being sued by the gram panchayat in Punjab and Haryana High Court against the land grabbing of the Gandhi family by the Hooda government. Then Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. who also held the charge of Panchayat department at that time, had approved the grant of 5.3 acre panchayat land to Rajiv Gandhi Trust for 33 years at a rate of Rs 3 lakh per acre in January 2010, trust applied for the change of land use on 3 December 2010, which was approved on the same day.
Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation (HSIIDC), formerly Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation (HSIDC), headquartered at Panchkula, is a 100% state-owned agency of the government of Haryana in the Indian state of Haryana. For ease of doing business, Haryana is the first state in India to introduce a labour policy in 2005 and Land Pooling Policy in 2017, for which HSIIDC acts as the nodal agency. Haryana Financial Corporation provides financial assistance for setting up new industrial units and for the expansion and diversification of the existing industries. Various universities, educational and training institutes, including the nation's first skills university Haryana Vishwakarma Skill University, provide the human resources to capitalise on the infrastructure created by the HSIIDC.
Haryana Orbital Rail Corridor (HORC), with target completion by 31 March 2025, is an under construction twin-track 121.7-kilometre (75.6 mi)-km long, 160 km per hour high-speed, railway project in Haryana state of India, which will run around along the Western Peripheral Expressway (WPE) on the western side of Delhi.