New Delhi [India], September 12 The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a fresh prosecution complaint or chargesheet against 16 accused in the multi-crore guava orchards compensation scam in Mohali, the agency said on Friday.
ED's Jalandhar zonal office filed the prosecution complaint on September 11 before the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Punjab's Mohali against Bhupinder Singh, Vikas Bhandari and 14 other accused in a money laundering investigation related to the case.
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ED initiated an investigation on the basis of a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the Punjab's vigilance bureau against Bhupinder Singh, Vikas Bhandari and others under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, 1860 and the Prevention of Corruption (Amendment) Act, 1988.
ED investigation revealed that "private persons in connivance with government officers availed wrongful compensation in lieu of guava orchards shown existing on land which was to be acquired by the Greater Mohali Area Development Authority (GMADA), Punjab, for setting up Aerotropolis Residential Project Near IT city in SAS Nagar, Mohali."
"The accused bought land after imposition of section 11 of the Land Acquisition Act, or took the land on lease, only for the sake of getting wrongful compensation for Guava Orchards," said the ED in a statement.
For the said purpose, the agency said, the accused connived with Revenue Officials to forge the revenue records, with Horticulture Development Officers (HDOs) to get favourable assessment reports about guava orchards and with officers working in GMADA to get wrongful compensation.
"Through such criminal activities, accused persons generated and acquired Proceeds of Crime (PoC) in crores of rupees," said the agency.
ED had previously conducted searches on March 27 last year at different premises, which led to the recovery of various incriminating documents. Earlier, ED had also attached immovable and movable properties worth Rs 9.87 crore in connection with the case.