The Anti-Corruption Bureau has issued a lookout notice for Mohd Shafi Dar, ex-chairman J&K Co-operative Bank Limited (JKCBL). It has been decided to reward any person who gives information about his whereabouts. Dar was booked in a graft case for sanctioning of Rs 223 crore in favour of a non-existent cooperative society in a fraudulent manner.
Reports state that the amount was sanctioned by Dar in favour of the non-existent "River Jhelum Cooperative Housing Society, Shivpora Srinagar". The project was owned and run by Hilal Ahmad Mir of the Magarmal Bagh locality in Srinagar.
When an inquiry was initiated in the matter, it was noted that the chairman of the society had forwarded an application to the Secretary, Cooperatives, Administrative Department of Cooperative Societies. The application was about directing the JKCBL for granting financial assistance of Rs 300 crore.
The amount asked was for taking over the possession of land, which was for constructing a satellite township. It was about 300 kanals, on the outskirts of Srinagar.
According to the ACB, the Registrar, Cooperative Societies, J&K, endorsed the application, for taking up the matter with the JKCBL as it had sanctioned the loan without finding out any details about the society.
No balance sheet, income tax return, PAN number, board resolutions etc were asked for before sanctioning the amount.
It further stated, "During inquiry, it also surfaced that the River Jhelum Cooperative Housing Society had not been even registered with the Registrar Cooperative Societies. The chairman (Mir) of the so-called society, by acting in league with the chairman of JKCBL and others, has prepared fake and fictitious registration certificates and managed the sanction of the loan."
Following this, a case was filed against the beneficiary and JKCBL ex-chairman by the ACB.
It was also stated that the offices and residential houses of the accused were searched for obtaining documents after getting a search warrant from the court and whatever was obtained was scrutinised.
Mir, the society's chairman, was arrested on May 14 to affect the recovery of documents required in the case which are supposedly lying in his possession and also to unearth the modus operandi.
