Suspended ex-Surat collector involved in Rs 2,000 cr land scam exposed by Cong, claims party leader
Surat (PTI): The opposition Congress in Gujarat on Tuesday alleged that IAS officer and former collector of Surat Aayush Oak was involved in a Rs 2,000 crore land scam, exposed by the party in May.
The allegation came a day after the state government on Monday suspended Oak on charges of committing "negligence" while dealing with a revenue land matter between 2021 and 2024 as the then-collector of Surat district.
Addressing the media, Congress leader Darshan Nayak claimed that he had sent a letter to Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel on May 25, seeking an inquiry against Oak for allegedly entering the name of a tenant farmer into the revenue records of a government land worth Rs 2,000 crore in the Dumas area of Surat city.
Oak, serving as Valsad district collector at the time of suspension, allegedly caused a huge financial loss to the government exchequer while dealing with the land matter, the state's General Administration Department (GAD) said in an order on Monday without elaborating.
The IAS officer was transferred to Valsad from Surat on January 31, 2024.
Nayak shared a copy of the letter he emailed to the chief minister in May and demanded an inquiry into the decisions taken by Oak as Surat collector.
"This piece of land measuring 2.17 lakh square meters in the Dumas area has been classified as government land in the revenue records since 1948, and it is now worth nearly Rs 2,000 crore. As per the laws governing tenancy and agricultural lands, the names of tenant farmers cannot be entered in the records of government land," said Nayak, who serves as a general secretary in the Gujarat Pradesh Congress Committee.
When nearly 22 persons had filed applications before the district collector demanding that their names be included in the records of that land, the then collector had taken this matter suo motu in 2015 and rejected all these applications in the public interest, he said.
Even after that, no collector had challenged that order and the land remained a government-owned land in revenue records, Nayak said.
"However, as part of a conspiracy in connivance with land mafias and political leaders, Oak, a day before his transfer, gave his approval to enter the name of one Krushnamukhlal Shroff as a tenant farmer, which would establish that person's right on that precious land. This was perhaps a first incident wherein a tenant was added in the revenue records of government land," he claimed.
The Congress leader said the state government overturned Oak's order in May and initiated an inquiry after the matter was brought to light by the opposition party.
Nayak said he along with sitting Congress MLA, Dr Tushar Chaudhary, had addressed a press conference on May 20, and demanded Oak's suspension and registration of an FIR against him and others involved in the alleged scam of capturing the government land.
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Drug addiction sign of mental illness, says DC Mullai Muhilan
Mangaluru: Drug addiction is a sign of mental illness and there is a critical need for awareness among students, stated Deputy Commissioner (DC) Mullai Muhilan at the ‘Drugs Free India’ awareness program. Organized by the Counseling Department of St. Aloysius PU College in collaboration with the District Administration, Mangaluru Police Commissionerate, Indian Coast Guard, and the Customs Commissionerate, the event took place on Tuesday.
Delivering the keynote address, DC Mullai Muhilan emphasized the importance of counseling centers in every school to educate students about the dangers of drug addiction. He highlighted the correlation between the increasing number of educational institutions in Dakshina Kannada District and the rising supply and demand for narcotic drugs. He stressed the need for continuous efforts to dismantle the supply chain of narcotics and initiatives to curb the demand through systematic education.
“Anti-drug units have been established in 528 colleges across the district. These units operate with utmost confidentiality, allowing students to report information about drug supply and abuse, thereby preventing their peers from falling into the trap of addiction,” Muhilan said.
Police Commissioner Anupam Agrawal reported that over 500 cases related to drug supply and abuse had been registered in the past six months, with 400 cases pertaining specifically to drug abuse. He noted that many complaints came from mothers about the deteriorating behavior and habits of their children. Agrawal stressed the importance of self-awareness among students to avoid drug addiction and urged them to stay away from narcotics.
Mangaluru Customs Commissioner P Vinitha Shekhar described narcotics as a ‘social menace’ and explained the customs department’s role in search and destroy operations in accordance with the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act. She highlighted India's vulnerability to drug trafficking due to its proximity to opium-producing countries like Myanmar, Vietnam, Laos, Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Iran. She also pointed out the link between drug supply networks and the funding of terrorist organizations.
District Coast Guard Centre DIG P K Mishra, through an illustrative story, encouraged students to contribute to society by reporting unusual behavior in their friends and peers that might indicate drug abuse.
Fr. Clifford Sequeira, Principal of St. Aloysius PU College, and Dr. B K Kiran Kumar from the Department of Psychology at the Institute of Medical Sciences were also present at the event.
