#phasgaya_kiRUN #Anti_corruption_bureau to seek govt advice on complaint against CM. HYDERABAD: In a surprising move, anti corruption bureau (ACB) officials have decided to seek the state governments advice on what to do with the petition filed by the Telangana Advocates JAC (TAJAC) charging chief minister Kiran Kumar Reddy with fraudulently handing over 4.6 acres of prime land at Nandagiri Hills, Jubilee Hills, to his alleged builder friend Amarender Reddy and causing a loss of Rs 140 crore to the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA). TAJAC members had lodged a complaint with the ACB on November 19 alleging that Kiran Kumar Reddy, in collusion with HMDA authorities, had fraudulently handed over the 4.6 acre land to Amarender Reddy in June 2013 at a price far below the prevailing market rate. Citing that the petitioners did not provide any documentary evidence to substantiate their allegations, ACB sleuths did not initiate any action on the petition for 10 days. However, according to sources, in what is being described as highly unusual in dealing with such petitions, the bureau has now decided to seek the state governments advice on what to do with the complaint. Accordingly, the ACB officials are to write to chief secretary P K Mohanty seeking his advice. As the complaint was against the chief minister and because it does not contain any supporting evidence, we have decided to write to the CS for advice and will follow his directions, an ACB official said. Incidentally, senior IPS officer A K Khan was appointed as the full-time director general of ACB on Thursday. Ideally, when a complaint about corruption involving government officials is received, ACB sleuths verify the background of the accused, his or her work-related reputation and the relation between the complainant and the accused (to rule out personal grudge as the motive behind the complaint). If everything is satisfactory, the bureau officials prepare a Verification Report (VR) containing details about various allegations raised by the complainant and also mentioning if any basic evidence is found in support of the allegations to proceed further. Based on the report, the ACB DG can order a regular enquiry (RE) into the allegations and in case the suspect officer (SO) is an All India Service Officer or, like in this case, the chief minister, the state governments permission would be needed to launch an inquiry. As per the merits of the evidence gathered during the inquiry, a criminal case can be registered under the PC Act. After registering a case and finishing the investigation, again permission would be sought from the government for prosecution of the accused. However, everything will depend on what advice the CS gives to the ACB on the matter.
Posted on: Tue, 03 Dec 2013 08:16:37 +0000