JDA former vice-chief chargesheeted in illegal plot allotment case

The Jammu and Kashmir Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has filed a chargesheet against the former vice-chairman of the Jammu Development Authority (JDA), his wife, and two others in connection with an illegal plot allotment case dating back over a decade, an official said.

The case was registered in 2014 following verification conducted by the previous vigilance organisation, now known as the ACB. It investigated allegations of the unlawful allotment of a plot of land in Trikuta Nagar and the illegal possession of an additional 4,300 square feet of land by Mamta Sharma, the wife of the then-vice-chairman, Vinod Sharma, the official said.

The investigation revealed that the accused individuals, in collusion with the JDA officials and by misusing their official positions, allegedly facilitated the illegal allotment of the plot and encroached upon the adjacent land, the official mentioned further.

Taking forward the case registered under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Ranbir Penal Code, the official informed that a chargesheet was filed in the Court of Special Judge, Anti-Corruption, Jammu.

The chargesheet includes the former Jammu Development Authority vice-chairman, his wife, Ghany Sham, the then-naib tehsildar at the JDA, and Rishi Kumar, the then-patwari at the JDA, both of whom have since retired and passed away recently.

The court has fixed December 15 as the next date of hearing in the matter, the official said.