Cuttack/Bhubaneswar, June 6: The Cuttack Development Authority has started the process to cancel plots in case of single allotment under the discretionary quota after January 1, 1995.
Show cause notices were issued to beneficiaries, including Dazy Jena, the wife of law minister Pratap Jena, who had built a house on such a plot at Sector-XI of Markatnagar and stays there. Official sources said the task force report had identified 921 beneficiaries of single allotments under the quota. The beneficiaries reportedly include bureaucrats, judges, lawyers and politicians.
The state government had formed the task force to examine the irregularities regarding allotment of land, flats and houses under the discretionary quota since January 1, 1995 in Cuttack and Bhubaneswar. It was also asked to review allotment of more than one plot, flat or house to the members of the same family. It submitted the report on November 3, 2014 and said: "All discretionary allotments made after January 1, 1995 should be cancelled."
In Bhubaneswar, the Youth Congress today staged a demonstration and burnt Jena's effigies, accusing him of not showing his property to the Election Commission.
Youth Congress state working president Lokanath Maharathy demanded Jena's resignation. "The development authority has issued notice to the minister's wife. The state's law minister has violated law by concealing information from the Election Commission. He must resign," he said.
The authority's secretary Kabindra Kumar Sahu said: "As part of the process, we have started issuing notices to the beneficiaries of single allotments under the quota, asking them to show cause as to why the plots in their names shall not be cancelled."
Sahu said: "In the first phase of the cancellation process, show cause notices have been issued to 40 beneficiaries of single plots under the quota. In the second phase, show cause notices will follow in the cases of another 50 beneficiaries shortly."
Earlier, as part of the cancellation process, the authority had forwarded to the government the cases of 136 beneficiaries of multiple allotments under the quota after completion of hearing. Sources said the government had ordered for cancellation of additional plots in the case 12 beneficiaries.
Cong demo
The student wing of the Congress also staged a demonstration over fake placement scam in the SOA University and discrepancies in the CBSE results. The National Students' Union of India took out a motorcycle rally and had a scuffle with police at Sishu Bhavan Square when they tried to march towards the residence of chief minister Naveen Patnaik. The police detained several union members, including its state president, Itish Kumar Pradhan.
"We have been demanding stringent action by the state government against the university for playing with the future of students. The police investigation has been very slow, so there should be a CBI enquiry," said Pradhan.
