The multi-department investigation into the arbitrary allotment of properties worth hundreds of crores in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack has made little progress with there being a concerted attempt to hush up the matter involving the high and mighty, a civil society group here alleged on Monday.
After the Comptroller and Auditor General of India reported massive irregularities in allotment of land, houses and flats by the Bhubaneswar Development Authority, the Cuttack Development Authority, the Odisha State Housing Board and the General Administration Department, the State government had constituted a task force under the chairmanship of Taradatt, former Additional Chief Secretary, to review the allotments in 2014.
Within the mandated four-month period, the task force came up with damning findings on how the discretionary quota system was misused to favour many influential persons, including journalists, politicians and officers and recommended cancellation of the allotments.
The State Cabinet approved the recommendation and in December 2014 directed that modalities for its implementation be framed. The government finalised the modalities on May 6, 2015. The State vigilance department also carried out its own probe.
“Now more than three years have passed and only 11 of the 732 allotments made by BDA have been cancelled, and in most cases the hearing is continuing. The CDA had served show-cause notices to 1,091 allottees on grounds of multiple allotments. Only 12 allotments have been cancelled,” alleged Pradip Pradhan of the Odisha Soochna Adhikar Abhijan who had painstakingly collected information exercising the RTI Act.
Mr. Pradhan said the OSHB had served show-cause notices to 66 people who got properties using discretionary power, but not a single property had been cancelled.
Activists have demanded that the matter be handed over to the CBI and a White Paper be presented in the coming session of the State Assembly.
