Rajasthan HC issues notices to ex-revenue minister, officials on ‘fraudulent’ transfer of govt land

The Rajasthan High Court on Friday sought stands of a former revenue minister and the Revenue Department of the state over a plea alleging illegal transfer of the part of a government college land to a private cricket cub in Barmer district.

A bench of Justice Sangeet Lodha issued notices to former minister Hemaram Choudhary and the Revenue Department seeking their replies to the allegations in the petition within two weeks.

The bench issued notices also to Barmer’s former District Magistrate Sanjay Dixit and its present DM.

Presently a Congress MLA from Gudamalani, Hemaram Choudhary was the state revenue minister from 2008 to 2013 in the previous Ashok Gehlot government.

The petition filed by a Rajasthan native Sabal Singh Bhati alleged that a total of 16 bigha land belonging to the Barmer Government College was transferred to the District Cricket Association, a private entity, in March 2013 when the then revenue minister was also the DCA’s president.

Choudhary is still the DCA president, the petition said.

Arguing for the petitioner, his counsel Gulab Singh told the court that the then tehsildar transferred the college land to the DCA without any authorisation from the district magistrate.

After transferring the land, the then tahsildar also directed the ‘patwari’ to mutate the land in favour of the DCA and it was done hastily the same day.

Singh argued that the land was transferred on the basis of a fake and forged order, purportedly passed in 1995 by then District Magistrate and ex-officio DCA treasurer Sanjay Dixit, but on an enquiry by the petitioner under the transparency law, it transpired that no such order ever existed.

“The land, which was meant for the college students was illegally transferred to a private body to be used by a private purpose”, he argued.

He alleged the then revenue minister Choudhary and the then DCA treasurer Sanjay Dixit blatantly misused their positions to amass illegal money by collection from the students through a private agency, Magnate Cricket Academy.

Hearing the arguments, the court issued notices to the then revenue minister and President of DCA Hemaram Choudhary, Principal Secretary (Revenue), the then district magistrate Sanjay Dixit and present district magistrate seeking reply in 2 weeks. (image from PTI)