2 MCD officials, motel owner get four-year jail term

Two MCD officials along with a motel owner have been sentenced to four years in jail by a court in a corruption case involving grant of completion certificate to the tourist lodge in 2008 despite unauthorised construction.

While convicting MCD Assistant Engineer Kailash Kumar Meena and Junior Engineer Kamal Singh for abusing their official positions in granting the certificate, the court also held 73-year-old Virender Kumar Khosla, the owner of Airport Residency Motel guilty of procuring the certificate illegally.

Special CBI Judge Gurvinder Pal Singh also imposed a fine of Rs 15,000 each on convicts, saying corruption poses a "major roadblock in India's journey from a developing to a developed economy".

"Today India is faced with a different kind of challenge. It is not 'petty bakshish' anymore but scams to the tune of thousands of crores that highlight a political, bureaucratic, industry nexus which if not checked could have a far reaching impact," the judge said.

The court also said, "Rigid bureaucracy, complex laws and long drawn processes of the legal system deter people from taking legal recourse against corrupt public servants."

According to CBI, Singh and Meena had conspired with Khosla in September 2008 and had dishonestly issued completion certificate despite unauthorised construction of basement and permanent additional structures which were not included in the sanctioned building plan of the motel.

The agency said the building plan was applied for in 2005 on the land owned by Khosla and his son and it was sanctioned on July 19, 2006.

The CBI said Khosla had sought completion certificate for the motel from the MCD and the site was inspected by Singh and Meena who approved granting of completion certificate to the motel and on the basis of their report, the same was issued by Meena on September 18, 2008.

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