CBI court awards 2 years RI to Ex. Registrars, 5 others in CGHS scam case

A Special CBI Court in New Delhi has sentenced seven individuals including two former public servants to two years of rigorous imprisonment for their roles in the fraudulent revival of a Co-operative Group Housing Society (CGHS). The convicted former officials are R.K. Shrivastava, then Registrar of Co-operative Societies, and P.N. Manchanda, then Assistant Registrar. Both were handed two-year sentences and fined Ra75,000 each for criminal misconduct. The five private individuals convicted in the scheme are K.K. Wadhwa, Anil Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Devender Pal Singh, and Ravi Saluja. They received matching two-year terms of rigorous imprisonment alongside monetary penalties for cheating, criminal conspiracy, and using forged documents.
According to CBI statement, the roots of the case trace back to September 2006, when the CBI launched a widespread investigation into the illegal reactivation of defunct CGHS entities originally registered between 1970 and 1980.Probe evealed that the private individuals conspired with officials of the Office of the Registrar of Co-operative Societies to illegally bring the defunct Lok Priya CGHS back onto paper. Using fabricated documents, the group successfully deceived authorities to secure high-value land allotments from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), the stateent noted.
The agency registered the instant case in September 2006 in connection with the fraudulent revival of defunct or wound-up Co-operative Group Housing Societies and following an exhaustive probe,  the agency filed its charge sheet against the accused in Delhi on January 27, 2008. The long-running judicial proceedings culminated on July 14, when the special court found all seven defendants guilty and on July 30, the court formally handed down the sentences and financial penalties.

(Freelance Journalist)