Who Will Now Defend DLF-Vadra Land Deals Defender TC Gupta ?

Chandigarh (I-Haryana News): There is a world famous proverb from English writer Shakespeare‘s play, “The Tragedy of Julius Caesar that, “Caesar's wife must be above suspicion” which means the person holding high public office should keep his or her integrity high in public eyes so that people in large could follow his rulings without any doubts, but this noble roman saying for responsible and all respectable public authorities have not been followed in the State of Haryana.

After recent DLF-Vadra and other land deals scams reported in media and well defended by Mr. T C Gupta, the Intelligent Haryana News Research team decided to work on Roman axiom mentioned above in Haryana Government Town and country planning department responsible for all alleged land developments projects approval in Haryana.

The Julius Caesar of this high profile revenue earning department for all concerned along with government, means Director General of Town and country planning is the highest public authority of this department and all works and orders are issued in under his official seal including Change in Land Use certificates popularly called CLU, nowadays the most talked word in Haryana political circle.

At, present when recent DLF-Vadra land controversies erupted; an IAS officer of 1987 batch, Mr. Trilok Chand Gupta is heading this department as Director General who has joined this department on 17/06/2010.

IHN Team sent email questionnaire to him on section 14(2) and 14(3) of THE ALL INDIA SERVICES (CONDUCT) RULES, 1968 which make mandatory for every All India service Officer (IAS) to follow these rules  while discharging his or her duty as a public authority. Section“14(2) says, “No member of the service shall make or permit any member of his family or any person acting on his behalf to make, any investment which is likely to embarrass or influence him in the discharge of his official duties. For this purpose, any purchase of shares from out of the quotas reserved for Directors or their friends and associates shall be deemed to be an investment which is likely to embarrass the Government Servant.

Further section says, “14 (3) If any question arises whether any transaction is of the nature referred to in sub-rule (1) or sub-rule (2), it shall be referred to the Government for its decision.”

Following is the sent e-mail to Mr. Gupta on November 2, 2012 at 8:56 AM with subject “Questionnaire on obeying AIS (Conduct) Rules 1968 while discharging duty of DG, TCP, Haryana.”

Following the Journalism ethics to give equal options to both sides of news, we are seeking following questions from your good self: As you know, THE ALL INDIA SERVICES (CONDUCT) RULES, 1968 section 14(2) says, “No member of the service shall make or permit any member of his family or any person acting on his behalf to make, any investment which is likely to embarrass or influence him in the discharge of his official duties. For this purpose, any purchase of shares from out of the quotas reserved for Directors or their friends and associates shall be deemed to be an investment which is likely to embarrass the Government Servant.

Further section says, “14 (3) If any question arises whether any transaction is of the nature referred to in sub-rule (1) or sub-rule (2), it shall be referred to the Government for its decision.”

1.   As mentioned above in sections of AIS Rules 1968, We would like to ask that did you or any members of your family have invested money in purchasing any flat/ plot/commercial site/industrial plot in projects developed by the companies to whom you as director General of the Town and Country Planning department had granted licenses to develop housing/commercial projects, if yes then detail of the same, like source of money, payment mode, cheque number and date of cheque or electronic fund transfer details etc?

2.     Also, you are requested to share, did you sought prior permission from Government to purchase the flat/ plot/commercial site/industrial plot in projects developed by the companies to whom you as director General of the Town and Country Planning department had granted licenses to develop housing/commercial projects as prescribed in the AIS (Conduct) Rules, 1968, if yes then supply us the copy (if possible) of the same and in case of not, the reason thereof.

So, you are requested to send your response by 5 pm November 3, 2012 otherwise it will deemed that you are not interested in putting your side in our research news story.”

It is mention worthy that we received response of our questionnaire from Mr. T C Gupta on same day, i.e. November 2, 2012 at 1:28 PM, and we sent our thanks from our research team for his quick answer to our queries.

Following is the response we received:

“With reference to your questionnaire, it is informed that neither I nor any member of my family as defined in the All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968 has invested any money in purchasing any flat/plot/commercial site/ industrial plot in projects developed by the companies to whom I as Director General of Town & Country Planning Department has granted licences to develop housing/commercial projects. Therefore, the question of seeking prior permission from Government in this regard does not arise.”

This is the one side of our research Story further when we analyzed annual property statements submitted by Mr. Trilok Chand Gupta for year 2010 and 2011 with government of India that confirmed following facts:

As per annual property statement for year 2010 the copy of this is with IHN, Mr. Trilok Chand Gupta owns two properties in his name as on January 1, 2011, and it is mention worthy that Mr. Gupta joined Haryana Town and Country planning department on 17/06/2010 and this statement of his immovable properties was filed just six months after he assumed charge of Director General of this most lucrative department.

•       A HUDA plot number 292-SP measuring 1.5 kanal in Sector 45, Gurgaon which he acquired through HUDA draw of lots in 2000 and had paid Rs 47,65,431/-till date

•       The statement confirmed that Mr.Gupta has membership in The Punjab IAS-PCS Officers Co-operative Housing Society in Mohali, where he has already paid Rs 27, 37,706/- and yet to get flat. 

Mr. Gupta filed his second property statement for year 2011 while working as Director General of Town and Country Planning, which confirmed addition of two immoveable properties in his kitty as on January 1, 2012.

•   Firstly, Mr. Gupta stated in his property statement for the year 2011 that he has made agreement to sell of his Plot no 292, sector 45, Gurgaon, mentioned above with New Delhi based company Kathuria Special Steels Rolling Mills Private limited @ of Rs 85000/- per square yard and had taken Rs two crore on account of part sale consideration on 13.12.2011, whose Director Mr. Subhash Chander Kathuria also remained Director of Parasnath Developers  and Mr. Trilok Chand Gupta has granted licences to Parasnath Developer as Director General of Town and Country planning, Haryana.

And also Mr. Subhash Chander Kathuria have directorships of following real estate companies Ramnika Estates (P)Limited, Geetanjali Properties (P)Limited; Himalaya Estates (P)Limited, and Navin Vikas Construction Private Limited having commercial interests in Haryana.

It is very strange that the company who has made agreement to purchase with Mr. T C Gupta while doing so and paid Rs two crore as part payment for purchase, was in process of merging itself into another company named SYNERGY GLOBAL STEEL PRIVATE LIMITED for this Scheme of Amalgamation of two companies Delhi High Court on August 31, 2012 allowed this.

•       Secondly, Mr. Gupta has stated in his annual property return for year 2011 that he his wife have paid Rs three lakh installment for his membership of The Punjab IAS-PCS Officers Co-operative Housing Society in Mohali, where he has already paid Rs 27, 37,706/- and yet to get flat.

•       Thirdly he mentioned a flat number 802, Block A in HEWO Scheme-II,GH-2, Sector 6, Mansa Devi Complex, Panchkula owned in  Mr. Gupta   and his wife name and deposited Rs 50,39338/-( Fifty Lakh thirty nine thousands three hundred thirty three only

In this property when IHN investigated found that Mr. Gupta was allotted this flat by HUDA Employees Welfare Organization(HEWO) during the his tenure as Chief Administrator, Haryana Urban Development Authority w.e.f 30/03/2007 to 08/06/2009.

HEWO is registered society for welfare of HUDA’s employees, where Mr. Gupta was shown that he was in deputation in HUDA and treated as its employee and allotted Super Deluxe category flat as there is legacy in HEWO to allot such flats to IAS officers and some HCS officers posted in Haryana Urban Development Authority included Mr. Gupta by showing all of them as deputationists for best reasons known to HEWO Functionaries, depriving home-less low paid  HUDA employees as compare to these senior Bureaucrats, who have already number of properties in their kitties.

•       fourthly, Mr. Gupta in his property statement for year 2011 stated that he purchased ground floor of 135-B, Gautam Nagar, New Delhi measuring 133.78 square meters area for Rs thirteen lakh and also spent Rs 78000/- in shape of stamp duty to registered the same in his name in August 2010.

Regarding, this property IHN Investigation revealed that Mr. Gupta has not disclosed the name of Seller from whom he has purchased the said property, as he had to state in column 6 of prescribed form mentioned in All India Service( Conduct) Rules 1968.

Further, the above mentioned property located in Gautam Nagar, New Delhi has fetched Mr. Gupta, the rental income Rs 793500/-(Rs seven lakh ninety three thousand and five hundred only) in just 12 months, means, Mr. Gupta, who has also qualification of Chartered Accountant has invested so precisely and intelligently that he got back nearly 58 percent of his investment in this property during first year.

IHN Research Team talked to Mr. Ravi Sharma, a Prominent Lawyer of Punjab and Haryana High Court on above issue, Mr. Sharma says, “Public servants are expected to be well discipline, efficient and top honest to ensure and maintain the high standard of administration as they posses certain exceptional rights and privileges in view of their being necessary part of the administrative machinery of the state.”

Further, the High Court Lawyer, Mr. Sharma opined Apart of from disciplinary action underAIS (Conduct) Rules 1968, section 165 of Indian penal code provide special penalty of imprisonment term which may extend to three years or with fine or with both. “When a public servant accepts or obtains or agrees to accept or attempts to obtain. for himself, or for any other person, any valuable things without consideration or for consideration which he knows to be inadequate, from any person whom he knows to have been, or to be ,or to be likely to be concerned in any proceeding or business transacted, or about to be transacted by such public servant, or having any connection with the official functions of himself or of any public servant to whom he is subordinate; or from any person whom he knows to be interested in or related to the person so concerned.”

Source; Intelligent Haryana News

Dinesh Singh Rawat says:

Julius Caesar  wife Pompeia hosted the festival of the Bona Dea ("good goddess"), which no man was permitted to attend, in this house. However a young patrician named Publius Clodius Pulcher managed to gain admittance disguised as a woman, apparently for the purpose of seducing Pompeia. He was caught and prosecuted for sacrilege.

Caesar gave no evidence against Clodius at his trial, and he was acquitted. Nevertheless, Caesar divorced Pompeia, saying that "my wife ought not even to be under suspicion."[4] This gave rise to a proverb, sometimes expressed: "Caesar's wife must be above suspicion"

This a mantra for India's most of recent political and other scams and problems, that first hed should have to keep itself clean than whole of body will itself mind its way of healthly life.