MOVE COURT IF VADRA-DLF ORDER INCORRECT, DARES KHEMKA

CHANDIGARH (TIP): The Robert Vadra- DLF land deal has stirred up a fresh controversy with the Town and Country Planning chief of Haryana, TC Gupta, claiming there were “factual inaccuracies” in the orders issued by Ashok Khemka who stood by his decision and said the aggrieved parties were free to move court. Khemka as Director General of Consolidation had cancelled the sale deed of 3.5 acre of land to realty major DLF following a deal with Vadra and had ordered probe into the entire episode.

He said any party could approach the high court if they felt aggrieved with his recent order. The 1991 batch IAS officer met Haryana Chief Secretary PK Chaudhary here for about 50 minutes, his first meeting after the recent controversy arising out of his order and his subsequent transfer from the post of Director General of Consolidation. Earlier, Gupta had taken on Khemka, a 1991 batch IAS officer, saying his order cancelling the mutation of the land deal contained “factual inaccuracies” and had been passed in “total disregard of administrative propriety”.

In a strongly worded letter to State Chief Secretary PK Chaudhary, Gupta, Director General of Haryana’s Town and Country Planning Department, referred to “orders of Director General, Consolidation of Land Holdings & Land Records-cum-Inspector General of Registration issued on October 15.” Khemka had observed that the Town and Country Planning department should not have renewed the LOI / licence granted to the vendor when a major portion of the consideration money had already been paid to it by the DLF. Gupta said the original copy of Khemka’s order has still not been received by his department, “even though the same has found its way to all newspapers / electronic media”. “In these orders, certain comments have unnecessarily been made against the working of this department which are not only unfounded but totally uncalled for,” he said. Talking to reporters after his meeting with the Chief Secretary, Khemka said, “The talk with the CS is privileged communication. It cannot be disclosed to the media.”

“I have left the post of DG Consolidation. If any party or government has any grievance following my order, the remedy for them is to approach the (Punjab and Haryana) High Court,” he said. In his letter, Gupta said that concerned officer (Khemka) is clearly not aware of the difference between licence and LOI. Licence is issued only after requirements mentioned in LOI are fulfilled. He said “these observations show lack of knowledge on the part of the officer not only about Haryana Development & Regulation of Urban Areas Act, 1975 and Rules, 1976 framed thereunder which these licences are granted / renewed but also about the provisions of Transfer of Property Act, which the officer, in the capacity of Inspector General of Registration, was supposed to know.”

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