Special Correspondent
NewsBits.in
Bhopal: Katni district collector Prakash Jangre and district excise officer RC Trivedi have been booked in a corruption case worth Rs 6.13 crore by the Jabalpur Lokayukta Police.
Jangre was caught in a massive controversy as Datia collector last year when he slapped an executive engineer of the public works department (PWD). He was found guilty in the matter transferred in November 2015 within a month of the incident.
In the fresh case, FIR has been lodged against the two officials for allegedly causing a loss of Rs 6.13 crore to government exchequer and for unduly favouring liquor contractors during auction of liquor outlets for year 2016-17 in the district.
The district collector and the DEO have been booked under sections of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 and also and FIR has been registered under sections 420 (Cheating) and 120(B) – fraud of the Indian Penal Code.
The Lokayukta Police (Jabalpur) has said that the collector was the licensing authority for liquor contacts and he failed to ensure that the contractors deposited the required earnest money and the license fee.
This caused a huge loss to the state exchequer and amounted to corruption for illegally favouring the contractors, the police said.
The district excise officer Trivedi has however told section of media that he was surprised at the move as his department has already lodged a police complaint about the financial fraud by the contractors.
Also the collector has reported the matter to the principal secretary of the commercial tax department. Jangre could not be contacted for comments.
