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| Court directs Vigilance for reinvestigation | | Purchase of 300 Microscope Scam | | EARLY TIMES REPORT
JAMMU, Feb 9: In a significant development, the High Court today asked the investigating agency for reinvestigation in much publicized scam of purchase of 300 microscopes by the Education Department after the presentation of challan.
Special Judge Anticorruption Jammu J R Kotwal ordered the State Vigilance Organization to investigate the role of the entire purchase committee and make a supplementary report as the case may be to this Court.
The VOJ presented challan in the Court Special Judge Anticorruption Jammu in purchase of 300 worthless microscopes as against the requirement of 10 to 12 microscopes for examining the properties of minerals (mineral-microscopes) in the School Education Department of Jammu Division for the year 2004-2005 at exorbitant rate of Rs 1800 per head thereby causing loss of Rs 5, 40, 000 to the state exchequer and undue advantage to the supplier M/S Cosmopolitan Traders Vir Marg Jammu.
As per case study, the conspiracy was allegedly hatched at two stages. Firstly at the tender stage, the supplier hatched conspiracy with two members of the expert committee and got approved from them sample of microscope posed by him as a mineral-microscope intend to be purchased in connection with teaching Geology subject in the schools.
He also hatched conspiracy with member secretary of the Divisional Level Purchase Committee for Jammu Division and got approved exorbitant rate of 1800 per microscope quoted by him as against its print price of Rs 650 and lesser rates quoted by the other tenderers. Secondly, the supplier roped in and hatched conspiracy with Chief Educations Officers Poonch, Kathua & Udhampur Districts. These three CEOs collectively purchased 300 microscopes from the suppliers as against genuine requirement of 10 to 12 mineral-microscopes in the entire Jammu Division.
The committee comprised seven members including the Accounts Officer, Directorate of School Education Jammu as its Member Secretary. The record of the case showed that the tendering process including approval of items selected by the concerned expert committee and their rates was performed by Divisional Level Purchase Committee headed by Director School Education Jammu as its convener.
The minutes of both the meetings show that as many as six members namely Jatinder Gupta, then Accounts Officer, Directorate of School Education Jammu, PP Verma then CEO Kathua, Thakur Dass Sharma then CEO Poonch, Balbir Singh Jamwal then CEO Udhampur, Romeshwar Kumar then Lecturer Higher Secondary School Samba, Balwan Singh then Lecturer SIE, Jammu and JS Manocha Supplier including the convener had taken part in both the meetings and had taken collective decision.
Consideration of the question involving role of member secretary in the alleged conspiracy would, however, certainly raised the question of parity which as a matter of fact has been raised by his counsel while arguing on his behalf.
It was argued as to how the member secretary alone can be blamed for the conspiracy out of six members having taken part in the two crucial meetings of the purchase committee. This question cannot be adjudged unless role of entire purchase committee is investigated and investigating agency submits its report based upon the result of such investigation and directed the Vigilance Organization to investigate the role of the entire purchase committee and make a supplementary report in this Court. (JNF) |
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