CBI may close Adarsh missing papers case

Soon after it took over the case,along with the probe into the main Adarsh scam,the CBI plunged into action,arresting UDD desk officer Gurudatt Wajpe,assistant town planner Nandkumar Narvekar and Waman Rawool,the then clerk to UDD principal secretary.

However,on completion of 60 days and with no strong evidence against the three,the CBI failed to file the chargesheet and the accused were granted bail. Since then,the three have been visiting the CBI office once a week,said defence advocate Satyavrat Joshi.

While the missing papers probe was initially conducted by the Mumbai Police Crime Branch,the CBI was handed over the case by the Bombay High Court on February 17. The CBI had claimed that the missing papers allegedly contained important information on the deletion of width of Captain Prakash Pethe Marg at Colaba and the CRZ clearance given to the land on which Adarsh society stands.

The relevant file pertaining to the Society moved in different departments between 1999 and 2003. While the file was sent to the record room in August 2003,the CBI had claimed that it was moved and missing for a few years. The CBI said Rawool,a clerk for Unit 12 (handling the Society) of the UDD in Mantralaya,was authorised to monitor the files that moved from the desk. The CBI claimed he allegedly misplaced the papers. It said Narvekar,desk officer,was aware that some pages of the Adarsh file were missing,but still did not bring it to anybody’s notice.

Rawool’s role was examined for this movement as he was the custodian of these files and could have allegedly aided other “influential accused” in tampering with the files,CBI sources said. However,they added that there is no witness or circumstantial evidence to build the case.

On November 1,2010,at the instance of Wajpe,a clerk searched the cupboard again and surprisingly the file had appeared suddenly without the note sheets. As many as 10 crucial pages were allegedly extracted from the files.

Besides several other UDD personnel,the CBI had also examined Ramanand Tiwari,the then UDD principal secretary and one of the accused in the Adarsh society scam.

“Soon after the bail order,the agency had made a desperate move of seeking permission to conduct a polygraph test on the trio. However,the magistrate court had rejected this application,” added Joshi.

The agency had also sought permission to conduct a polygraph test on three other officials from the UDD. That application was also was rejected.

All three accused have been under suspension since their arrest and have been receiving half of their stipulated salaries. “We have been awaiting at least some action by the CBI. If they do not have any proof against the three,its time that they discharge them from the case,” said a relative of Rawool.