ED serve notice to district collector?

Lokmat News Network

Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar:

A rumour that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has served notice to the former commissioner of the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar Municipal Corporation (CSMC) and the sitting district collector Astik Kumar Pandey, into the alleged tender scam of Prime Minister Awas Yojana (PMAY), was talk of the revenue (district collectorate) and the municipal corporation headquarters, on Monday.

The rumour which is playing since May 6 also says that he has sought three weeks' time in the case. Meanwhile, there is no confirmation from the administration level of it. Besides, Pandey also clarified that he has not yet received any notice from the ED.

The PMAY tender scam was unearthed in February 2023. Sensation prevailed when the civic administration detected that three different contractors (of agencies) submitted their responses to the tender through one IP address. Later on, deputy commissioner Aparna Thete lodged a complaint against 19 owners and other office-bearers of the three agencies (responding to the tender) with the City Chowk police station on February 23, 2023. Around 75 days have passed since the filing of the case. Adding to the woes, all the government machinery involved in the finalisation of the tender as well as fixing the contractor have come under suspicion.

The complaint lodged by the municipal corporation stated that the contractor has violated the tender process and cheated the civic body although, in reality, it was not financially sound. This is the reason, why CSMC’s PMAY scheme could not be completed. The contractor pushed the state government and the CSMC to sustain a financial loss and opted for illegal ways to gain personal benefits, it stated.

After this, the ED pressed Thete for inquiry to Mumbai. Later on, the ED conducted simultaneous raids in the city and seized necessary documents relating to the PMAY scam in possession. Later on, the action seems to have come to a standstill!

Box

“ It is for sure that the notice will be served to me one day or the other, but I had not received it as of today. ED would like to know about the decision taken by me about PMAY while serving in the capacity of the municipal commissioner. Hence, I would be able to speak on the issue only after serving the notice to me,” said the district collector.