On 20th October 2020, the Allahabad High Court granted the second bail application filed by a Revenue Officer in Uttar Pradesh’s Ghaziabad regarding the Rs. 126 crore Yamuna Expressway land scam, i.e., the YEIDA land scam.
The order was passed by single-judge Bench of Justice Suneet Kumar after it was said that there was a change in conditions for moving the second bail application as a prosecution witness of the CBI demolished the agency’s case.
Anoop Trivedi (counsel for the Plaintiff), pointed out that the CBI claimed to have apprehended the Applicant, Ranveer Singh, in a trap case at Ghaziabad, the CBI’s witness had testified that the Applicant was arrested at his hotel in Delhi. Hence it was urged that the plaintiff is innocent and was falsely connected in the case.
The Court noted that Sanjay Kumar Yadav (counsel for the State) could not dispute the said facts and therefore without expressing any opinion on the facts of the case granted Singh’s bail plea.
“Without expressing any opinion on the merits of the case and considering the nature of accusation and the severity of punishment in case of conviction and the nature of supporting evidence, reasonable apprehension of tampering of the witnesses and prima facie satisfaction of the Court in support of the charge, the applicant is entitled to be released on bail in this case,” the court-ordered.
The land scam is said to be done by the former CEO of authority, with 20 other suspects. It is claimed that forward the land acquisition proceedings for the expressway, some YEIDA officers and members acquired 57 hectares of property in 7 villages of Mathura, at less rates, through Benami transactions. Later the YEIDA attained these lands at more than two times the original rates.
The investigation was handed over to the CBI which detained VS Rathore, Inspector of the Anti-Corruption Branch in Ghaziabad, Sunil Dutt, ASI of the CBI Academy of Ghaziabad and Tehsildar Ranveer Singh and some unknown officers of the Uttar Pradesh Police and other unrevealed people.
They are accused of criminal conspiracy under Section 120 B of Indian Penal Code and for offenses under Section 7 (Offence relating to public servant being bribed), Section 7 A (Taking undue advantage to influence public servant by corrupt or illegal means or by the exercise of personal influence) and Section 8 (Offence relating to bribing of a public servant) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
