CHANDIGARH /JALANDHAR/ NURMAHAL
The Punjab state revenue officer’s association has accused the Punjab vigilance bureau (VB) personnel of acting as extortionists with the mala fide intention to collect money by blackmailing the sub-registrars.
The association in its recently held meeting passed a resolution in this regard which discussed undue interference of vigilance in the registration process.
President and general secretary Gurdev Singh Dham and Vijay Behal said the meeting was held through Zoom and said officers have been asking the vigilance department for a long time to issue clear-cut directions to the vigilance bureau but to no avail.
They said that t is illegal to act contrary to mandatory provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act and to conduct an inquiry and register of FIR without seeking prior sanction for investigation from the competent authority adding that the Ludhiana case is an example of such gross violation.
The resolution said it was decided by the meeting that sub-registrars and joint sub-registrars will neither hand over registration records nor not allow any vigilance personnel to check registration.
Association said illegal colonies are the result of the negligence of housing and local bodies departments and these departments have deliberately flared up No Objection Certificate (NOC) issues to cover their misdeeds adding that ultimately onus has been shifted to Revenue Department. It said that despite dangerous unrest in the real estate sector for the last three years and in public but both departments have miserably failed to address public concerns.
The resolution said revenue officers are facing heat in form of notoriety and public anger which is justified and facing disciplinary action by the revenue department.
They said registration work should be assigned to housing and local bodies departments and the registration act allows honorary sub registrars and the government has conveyed this suggestion to them.
Association urged Financial Commissioner Revenue to issue clear-cut instructions to entertain or not old NOC issued manually adding that we can not deny manual NOC to harass the public.
The resolution said that the housing department has issued login IDs and passwords to sub-registrars and joint sub-registrars to check the genuineness of NOC but there are no provisions to lock NOC which can be misused by cheaters.
Association has appealed to the public that they are not responsible for NOC problems and are suffering and being made scapegoats by some vested interests.