Illegal Parking Case: Court Criticizes Lack Of Sanction To Investigate Officials

A Special Anti-Corruption Branch Court has recently expressed dissatisfaction with an investigating officer for not seeking permission to investigate multiple public servants, including senior police officers, in a case involving illegal parking in South Delhi’s Saket area.

The court noted that the IO had only obtained approval to investigate one officer and criticized the ACB for failing to investigate how illegal parking continued despite the cancellation of permits.

“The Anti-Corruption Branch shall, on the next date, report whether it intends to seek approval for investigating the other officers/offenders named in the complaint,” ordered Special Judge Ashish Agarwal on August 14. The next hearing is set for September 29.

The case stems from a complaint by advocate Vikas Bakshi, who called for an FIR to investigate allegations that illegal parking continued in Saket even after the license was canceled, with public money being extorted. Bakshi alleged that this was done by a parking mafia in collusion with police and Municipal Corporation of Delhi officials.

The court criticized the ACB for not probing why MCD officers, despite canceling the parking allotment, failed to reclaim the land or reassign it. The court questioned why no effort was made by the MCD to recover money owed by the entity that had been allotted the parking site, and why the allotment was made to an entity with an incomplete or incorrect address.

The court remarked, “The Anti-Corruption Branch also has not made any attempt to find out if all of the aforesaid had been happening because of money exchanging hands.” The judge further described the ACB’s approach as “slipshod.”

The court also ordered a copy of its directive to be sent to the Chief Secretary of Delhi to review the ACB’s functioning and ensure that competent and dedicated personnel are assigned to such cases.

The court found it strange that while Delhi Police acknowledged in status reports that multiple individuals were involved in the crime, the ACB’s IO seemed to believe that no crime had been committed, without conducting a thorough investigation. The court stressed that the allegations in the complaint involved corruption, suggesting that officers may have accepted bribes to ignore the cancellation of the parking site’s allotment, allowing illegal extortion to continue.

The court pointed out that if the officers involved were asked whether they were committing the crime, they would likely deny it, especially since there has been no detailed investigation. The court also referred to an order by the Lokpal, stating that it did not provide a conclusive finding that the alleged corruption did not occur. The court clarified that even if a criminal case is dismissed, investigating agencies can still investigate and file a fresh charge sheet.

The complaint, filed by Vikas Bakshi, outlines allegations against M/s. Sanjay Kumar Technocrate Pvt. Ltd., which was allotted parking rights on a 4-5 acre plot behind Select City Walk Mall in Saket. The complaint alleges that the entity illegally used the site for extorting money, despite having an incomplete address and owing a substantial amount of money to the MCD. The allotment was canceled on July 17, 2023, yet the parking site remained operational.

An FIR was registered on September 27, 2023, under Sections 384/506 of the IPC against the parking mafia and the company. The complaint also names Inspector Subodh Kumar (SHO, Saket Police Station), Vikas Tripathi (Additional Commissioner), Amit Kumar (Deputy Commissioner), and Vinod Kumar (Administration Officer) as complicit with the parking mafia, allegedly receiving weekly and monthly bribes to allow the illegal activities to continue.

This is reportedly causing the government a loss of approximately Rs 3 crore, according to the court order.

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