Minority affairs minister Azam Khan has alleged that the state’s Micro small and medium enterprise (MSME) department is hand in gloved with the businessman and industrialists of his hometown Rampur leading to big land scam. He said with the connivance of the officers and land for industrial purpose has been sold as residential plots.
The minister said it’s intriguing that the state government and the district administration were unaware of the serious irregularity and they took no action even after the matter was exposed.
In a letter to the principal secretary MSME department Azam Khan said why no action has been taken so far despite the fact that he had himself had written a letter to the department.
"If the reason is procedural delay then who is the beneficiary of the delay. If there was no procedural delay then what the reason behind the conspicuous silence of the district administration and the officers sitting in the state secretariat’’, asked Azam Khan in his letter.
Azam Khan said that some businessman of Rampur associated with an organization of trade and industry are engaged in anti social and immoral activities who sold the costly land allotted to them for industrial purpose. Azam Khan said the land was sold as residential plots which are illegal and unauthorized.
Azam Khan said during a meeting recently in his office chamber the illegal activities by the white collar businessman were brought to the notice of the principal secretary MSME. Minister said after the meeting he was confident that the principal secretary would take the matter seriously and take action against those involved in illegal activities.
"I regret that even after a fortnight far from any effective action, the principal secretary is yet to make a preliminary inquiry into the mater. No action has been taken despite the fact that the industrial plots were allotted without implementing the policy of reservation for the SC, ST and minorities’’, said Azam Khan in the letter.
Questioning the integrity of the bureaucrats Azam Khan said the officers have failed to discharge their duty of implementing the government order since they have close links with the businessman who leads an extravagant life. He said that the bureaucrat-businessman nexus is so strong that it’s difficult to prevent the officers from flouting the rules and regulations.