VIBHA VERMA
PANJIM: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Crime Branch (CB) is expected to file charge-sheets against senior politicians Jitendra Deshprabhu and Prafulla Hede in connection with the mining scam. In the other mining case that involves 182 mining leases, there will be separate charge-sheets either lease-wise or in group of leases being filed.
Deshprabhu, and his former aide Geetesh Naik, have been booked for causing a loss of Rs 50 crore to the State by carrying out illegal mining activities. Hede, a politically-influential mine owner, has been accused of running a mine in Collem, Sanguem between 1988 and 2007, whose renewal of the mining lease was allegedly made by illegally condoning the delay.
In the first case, sources in the government told Herald that SIT is awaiting an approval from the appointing authority following which a voluminous charge-sheet will be filed before the local court. “The file has already been moved to the appointing authority for sanctioning. A charge-sheet will be filed soon after the approval,” said the source.
The case saw Naik’s arrest in July. The investigation pertains to a complaint lodged by the Director of the Directorate of Mines & Geology (DMG), Prasanna Acharya, against Deshprabhu and some senior officials of DMG alleging illegal mining activities in survey No 299/0 at Bhaidwado Korgao in 2012. Their involvement was indicated in the extraction and transportation of ore from the property. In the other case, on September 19, 2014, a first information report (FIR) against Hede and others was registered following a complaint filed before the SIT by Acharya.
The Mines Director had alleged that between 1988 and 2007 mining operations were carried out in TC (title of concession) no 30/1950 through the illegal condonation of delay given by a public servant/government official at that period, which was in violation of Section 19 of the Mines and Mineral (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957.
Acharya stated that the mine was operated illegally in violation of Section 4(1) (1-A) of the Act and had caused losses to the government exchequer and illegal gains to the mine operators. This case too, sources said, will be filed “very shortly.”
Out of 13 cases with the SIT, three were reverted to the respective police stations while three cases were pending investigation and the rest charge-sheeted.
