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| Court acquits 8 from corruption chargesCourt acquits 8 from corruption chargesCourt acquits 8 from corruption charges | | The respite came to accused after 21 years of investigation and trial | |
Jammu, September, 19:- Special Judge Anticorruption Jammu Mr. JR Kotwal as acquitted the then Range Officer Abdul Hafiz Bhat, Mohd Iqbal Forester, Bashir Ahmed Forester, Balwan Singh Forest Guard Forest Division Ramban and Ghulam Hussain Andrabi the then Assistant Manager, Sher Mohammad Assistant Supervisor, Fiaz Ahmed Shah Assistant Supervisor SFC Division Ramban and Imam Din Contractor SFC from the charges of corruption and conspiracy after 21 years investigation and Trial of the case.
According to the prosecution case in the year of 1984 forest department had authorized the State Forest Corporation, Extraction Division Ramban to extract 500 poles from forest compartments comprised in Neel Block of Forest Division Ramban. The corporation had engaged Imam Din as contractor to execute the extraction. The forest department had identified by marking the trees having 20-30 CMS diameters to be felled for the purpose. It is alleged that contractor entered into criminal conspiracy with other accused persons thereby provided the opportunity to contractor to fell the oversize trees by confirming undue benefit of Rs 78,250.43 paisa upon contractor and corresponding loss to state exchequer.
In the 27 pages judgment Mr. JR Kotwal Special Judge Anticorruption Jammu after hearing both the sides observed that the prosecution has succeeded in proving only that the forest department had allowed the State Forest Corporation to extract poles from Forest Compartments in Neel Block of Forest Division Ramban and most of the trees fell on spot were more than 20 to 30 CMS diameter in size. However, the evidence led by the prosecution fails in proving that the officials of the forest dept comprising the then Range Officer Abdul Hafiz Bhat, Forester Mohd Iqbal and Forest Guard Balwan Singh were involved in marking oversize trees in the forest compartments in question and they along with accused Ghulam Hussain Andarbi the then Asst Manager and Sher Mohammad Assistant Supervisor SFC has facilitated felling said oversize trees or that accused Bashir Ahmed Forester had failed in reporting to his superiors the wrong marking done by his predecessor and other officials. Above all prosecution as failed to lead any evidence to prove that the corporation had engaged Imam Din contractor for extraction of poles or that Imam Din had effected the extraction and that by felling of the oversize trees undue pecuniary advantage was obtained by him. Prosecution has thus failed in proving the important ingredients of the charge against the accused persons. All of them are acquitted from the charges leveled against them. It is worthwhile to mention Fiaz Ahmed Shah Assistant Supervisor SFC Division Ramban died during the Trial. |
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