Chandigarh: Nearly five years after an FIR was registered against former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda in connection with an alleged land acquisition scam, Haryana Police filed an affidavit before the Punjab and Haryana High Court Wednesday, which says that the revenue officials have found “no violation of rules/regulation” in the transfer of land by Robert Vadra’s Sky Light Hospitality to DLF.
The HC bench comprising Justices Augustine George Masih and Harpreet Singh Brar was hearing a suo motu matter pertaining to the pendency of cases against MPs and MLAs (sitting or former) of Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh. The affidavit — which ThePrint has seen — contains the status of these various cases, including one related to former CM Om Prakash Chautala in a case of alleged irregularities and malpractices in recruitment.
For Hooda, though, the affidavit is not a “clean chit”. The FIR filed in Gurugram on 1 September, 2018, with regard to a land deal concerning Vadra, Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law, still exists. The police had booked Hooda for cheating, dishonestly-inducing delivery of property and forgery, among other crimes.
The investigation in the case itself is not over, a senior police officer told ThePrint on condition of anonymity.
Speaking to ThePrint Thursday, Hooda refused to comment on the affidavit since the matter is sub judice, but said: “I have always said I have complete faith in the judicial system of the country.”
Also Read: Controversial Haryana minister Devender Babli accused of manhandling Dalit municipal engineer
The FIR
Less than a month before the filing of the affidavit, the Haryana government had constituted a new special investigation team (SIT) on 22 March, 2023, comprising the deputy commissioner of police, two assistant commissioners of police, one inspector and one assistant sub-inspector to further investigate the matter, the HC was informed.
The affidavit by Haryana Police — submitted by Dr Rajshri Singh, Inspector General of Police, Crime, Haryana, and seen by ThePrint — is a complete U-turn from what it alleged in the FIR filed on 1 September, 2018.
In the case pertaining to Hooda, the affidavit was filed with regard to ‘FIR No. 288’, dated September 1, 2018, under IPC sections 420 (cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document) and 120B (punishment of criminal conspiracy), registered at Kherki Daula Police Station in Gurugram.
The FIR had said that Vadra’s company, Sky Light Hospitality Pvt Ltd, purchased 3.5 acres of land in Sector 83 Gurugram from Onkareshwar Properties for Rs 7.50 crore in 2008, when Hooda was CM and also held the portfolio of the Town and Country Planning Department.
It added that Sky Light sold this land to DLF Universal Ltd on September 18, 2012, at Rs 58 crore, after it got a commercial licence for the development of a colony with the influence of Bhupinder Singh Hooda — making a profit of around Rs 50 crore in the deal, an allegation that has in the past been trashed by Vadra.
According to the affidavit, though, “no regulations/rules have been violated in said transaction.”
The 3.5-acre land was the same one red-flagged by Ashok Khemka, during his tenure as Director General, Consolidation. He had then cancelled the land’s mutation (part of the process to transfer ownership of a piece of land). Later, a committee of three IAS officers constituted by the state government had reversed Khemka’s orders.
The FIR added that, to help DLF make up for its loss, the Hooda-led state government allotted the developer 350 acres of land at Wazirabad in Gurugram in violation of the rules. It was alleged that in this “quid pro quo”, DLF made Rs 5,000 crore.
However, the affidavit said: “As per the report received from tehsildar, Wazirabad, Gurugram, it was clearly stated that the (350 acre) land in question has not been found in the name of M/s DLF Universal Limited and the land still exists in the name of HSVP/HSIIDC, Haryana,” the affidavit said.
HSVP stands for Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran, earlier known as the ‘Haryana Urban Development Authority (HUDA)’, and HSIIDC for the Haryana State Industrial and Infrastructure Development Corporation.
It may also be recalled here that, in its order in September 2014, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had set aside the Haryana government’s decision to transfer 350 acres of land to DLF in 2010 and had directed the state to auction the land by inviting international bids within a month, said reports. The order was challenged by the DLF in the Supreme Court where the apex court ordered status quo.
Also Read: Haryana is hurrying to make courts Hindi-only. Some things are getting lost in translation
The affidavit
Pushing the investigation ahead of the court hearing, the affidavit filed by the Haryana Police said that Satyanand Yajee, director of M/s Onkareshwar Properties Ltd (now SGY Properties Ltd), joined the investigation on 3 and 6 April this year.
“A former director of Onkareshwar Properties, Kewal Singh Virk, was also served with a notice to join the probe on 10 April this year and a notice has also been served to DLF to seek relevant case details,” the affidavit added.
The affidavit said that records pertaining to Sky Light Hospitality and Sky Light Realty were received from the registrar of companies (RoC) on 5 November, 2022, and from tehsildar, Manesar, Gurugram on 11 November, 2022.
On 23 November, 2022, the District Town Planner, Gurugram, also stated that the relevant record has been supplied to the police.
On December 12, 2022, the station house officer (SHO) of Kherki Daula police station, again served a notice to RoC to seek additional information and records of Sky Light Hospitality and Sky Light Realty Private Ltd.
“Bank statements of Sky Light Hospitality and Sky Light Realty revealed that Rs 7,45,00000 and Rs 7,43,44,500 had been transferred from the account of Sky Light Hospitality to the account of Onkareshwar Properties on 9.08.2008, and 16.08.2008, respectively (sic),” the affidavit said.
Records regarding to whom the stamp fee was deposited when Onkareshwar sold 3.5 acres to Sky Light in February 2008 revealed that the purchased stamp of serial number 748, dated 28.01.2002, and for Rs 45 lakh, was purchased for Sky Light through one D.S. Yadav, the affidavit added.
“As per the record received from DTCP (director, town and country planning), Onkareshwar Properties had submitted a sum of Rs 7,413,000 through a pay order dated 03.01.2008 on account of scrutiny fee. The licence fee amounting to about Rs 56,721,000 was adjusted on the request of Onkareshwar Properties in favour of Sky Light Hospitality. The (real estate development) licence has not been transferred in favour of DLF Retail Developers Ltd (sic),” said the affidavit.
(Edited by Richa Mishra)