The Allahabad High Court has sought the the progress report of the ongoing SIT investigation into the cooperative recruitment scam case in which several bureaucrats are accused, including former chairman of Cooperative Institutional Service Board Omkar Yadav and secretary Bhupendra Kumar.
The Division Bench of Justice Kaushal Jayendra Thaker and Justice Nalin Kumar Srivastava passed this order while hearing a petition filed by Maheshwari Prasad Rai.
By way of the writ petition, the petitioner has prayed for the following relief:
“(i) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of mandamus directing the respondents to conduct fair and time bound investigation uninfluenced by the status of the accused in accordance with law pursuant to the FIR dated 21.5.2021 lodged by the Special Investigation Team ( SIT), Police Station SIT, Lucknow Rural Lucknow in Case under Section 420, 467, 468, 471, 201, 204, 120B IPC against Omkar Yadav the then Managing Director of UP State Warehousing Corporation and Chairman of UP Cooperative Institutional Service Board, Lucknow ; Bhupendra Kumar, the then Secretary of UP Cooperative Institutional Service Board, Lucknow; and Smt Neelam Pandey, Director, Data Tracks Computer System, Lucknow and other officers of the UP Cooperative Institutional Service Board, Lucknow and take appropriate action strictly in accordance with law against the accused ;
(ii) Issue a writ, order or direction in the nature of Mandamus directing the respondents to produce the action taken report before the Court pursuant to the aforesaid FIR.”
Though the various prayers made in the writ petition cannot be granted once the SIT has already been constituted on the FIR lodged by the petitioner which is lodged on 21.5.2021, the Court said.
Instead of disposing of the petition, the Court called upon the person-in-charge of Special Investigation Team, Police Station SIT, Lucknow Rural, Lucknow to place on record what is the outcome of the FIR dated 21.5.2021 in Case under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 201, 204, 120B IPC.
The Court directed the State to get the report of the aforesaid case and file its report.
The Court has fixed the next date of hearing on September 29, 2022.