Uttarakhand govt appoints two investigating officers in Haridwar land scam case

Dehradun, Oct 10 (PTI) Initiating a departmental inquiry against two suspended IAS and one PCS officers in connection with an alleged land scam worth crores of rupees in Haridwar, the Uttarakhand government on Friday appointed two investigating officers.

The then Haridwar District Magistrate Karmendra Singh, the then Municipal Commissioner of the Municipal Corporation Varun Chaudhary, and the then Sub-District Magistrate Ajayveer Singh, who were found prima facie guilty in the investigation into the alleged land purchase scam in Haridwar's Sarai village, were suspended on June 3 this year on the instructions of Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami.

A total of 10 officers were suspended in the case, while the service extensions of two personnel were terminated.

According to an order issued by the Home Department, based on the prima facie involvement in the case, a chargesheet was issued against Ajayveer Singh and he was given an opportunity to present his side of the story, and he denied all allegations in his written reply dated September 16.

The order stated that to ensure a fair investigation in this matter, IAS officer Anand Srivastava has been appointed as the investigating officer against them. He has been directed to submit the investigation report within a month.

IAS officer Sachin Kurve has been appointed as the investigating officer against two other officials allegedly involved in the case—Karmendra Singh and Varun Chaudhary.

In addition to suspending the officials, the chief minister also issued strict instructions to cancel the sale deed related to the alleged land scam and ensure the recovery of the money paid to the landowners. PTI DPT MNK MNK