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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Forestry scam: MoEF seeks CBI probe-Nitin Sethi

Forestry scam: MoEF seeks CBI probe-Nitin Sethi

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published Published on Apr 16, 2012   modified Modified on Apr 16, 2012

The Union environment and forests ministry (MoEF) has taken a position countering the Union government's department of personnel and training (DoPT) and stuck to its demand for a CBI inquiry in the forestry scam cases in Haryana.

In a letter written to the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC), the environment ministry has reiterated its view that severe violations of forests and wildlife laws were committed in the three cases - digging a canal inside the Saraswati Wildlife Sanctuary in violation of wildlife laws and Supreme Court orders in Kurukshtera; illegal spending of public funds on private property in Fatehabad; and misappropriation of funds for plantations in Jhajjar in Haryana which involved senior IAS and IFoS officials and politicians in the state. The ministry has stuck to its guns that the cases must be investigated and not dropped.

All these cases came to light when a forest officer in Haryana, Sanjiv Chaturvedi, brought it to the Centre's notice. The Centre revoked the false chargesheets imposed by the state government against Chaturvedi and based on a two-member committee report and recommendations by the CBI and the CVC, pushed for investigations into the scam by the central probe agency. The CVC had recommended protection for Chaturvedi and along with the CBI recommended that the cases were fit for investigations.

But when the environment ministry asked the Haryana government to institute a CBI inquiry into the cases as per the CVC's recommendations, the state got back by disclosing a confidential note of the DoPT written to the PMO and accessed through RTI stating that the committee's report had been ultra vires and the Centre did not have the powers to intervene in what it considered was the jurisdiction of the state government. The DoPT note, written after a CBI inquiry was demanded, did not ask for such a demand to be withdrawn by the Centre and suggested status quo until the environment ministry or the Haryana government approached it for further action.

Now, the environment ministry has filed a status report to the CVC and countered the defence put up by the Haryana government using the DoPT note. The environment ministry has said the violations are criminal offences under the central wildlife and forests laws. Forestry and wildlife falls under the Concurrent List. It has also noted that the case pertains to misuse of central government funds and therefore it holds the right to prosecute and move against the accused.

While the two ministries have now locked horns, the Haryana government has refused to do more than carry out departmental inquiries in limited cases.

The Times of India, 16 April, 2012, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Forestry-scam-MoEF-seeks-CBI-probe/articleshow/12681763.cms


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