Chandigarh: Locking horns with the Haryana government, senior IAS officer Ashok Khemka today said there was no need to set up a committee after he cancelled the sale of over three acres of land to realty major DLF following a deal with businessman Robert Vadra.
Khemka, who kicked up a political storm three weeks ago alleging irregularities in Vadra-DLF land deals, also said there was no need of security that was provided to him and he wanted a fair and quick probe into threats received by him.
The 1991 batch IAS officer met Haryana Chief Secretary P K Chaudhery, who had called him for a meeting in the wake of threat calls, in his office here.
After meeting Chaudhery, who is also President of the State IAS Officers’ Association, Khemka said “there is nothing for media that I can disclose. The communication is privileged.”
The IAS officer faced a volley of questions from media persons including one related to the arrest of a person last week who had allegedly made one of the threat calls to some employees.
Asked if the probe into alleged irregularities relating to Robert Vadra-DLF land deals was heading into the right direction especially after the constitution of the committee, Khemka said “I have not got any notice (regarding setting up of the committee).”
“Neither they (the committee members) have called me nor I am aware of the probe they have been conducting,” he said.
Khemka, who had been transferred to another department, said he felt there was no need to set up the committee in the first instance.
“If anyone has felt aggrieved against my orders, the right jurisdiction lies with the High Court,” Khemka said.
“The government, Robert Vadra, the DLF or any affected department like the Town and Country Planning or any other office could have approached the High Court,” he said.
“This is the due process as per the law. But, if you (govt) don’t believe in this and form any other committee, it indicates you don’t have faith in the Constitution … which is a matter of great regret,” Khemka said.
On October 16, the Haryana government had ordered an inquiry after Khemka cancelled the mutation of the land deal.
“The state government has nonetheless ordered an inquiry into all the issues (irregularities) raised by Khemka” in the land deals,” Chaudhery had earlier stated.
The Inquiry Committee, headed by the Additional Chief Secretary, also has two senior members of the state government and it was asked to complete the probe within a month.
Apparently referring to the four Deputy Commissioners giving a clean chit to Vadra saying the son-in-law of Congress President Sonia Gandhi or his companies had not “undervalued” any land registration in four districts of the state falling in the National Capital Region since 2005, Khemka said “at least allow your (govt’s) own committee to function.”
“I would say that you are even trying to pre-judge the decision of your own committee by telling them that this is what government has decided (to give a clean chit to Vadra) by issuing a press release,” he said.
A Haryana government release on October 26 had said the “the DCs of four districts — Gurgaon, Faridabad, Palwal and Mewat– have inspected all documents registered in their respective districts from January 1, 2005 till date by or on behalf of Robert Vadra or his companies in the capacity of either vendor or vendee and have certified that no deed has been found registered as undervalued.”
