Uttarakhand: Case of waiving off fine of Rs 50 crore on stone crushers, next hearing will be on November 5
The Uttarakhand High Court heard a petition filed against the waiver of a fine of more than Rs 50 crore imposed by the former District Magistrate of Nainital on illegal mining and storage of various stone crushers during his tenure. While hearing the case, the division bench of Acting Chief Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari and Justice Vivek Bharti Sharma has fixed the date of November 5 for the final hearing of the case after the hearing.
The court told the petitioner that he can give his reply on the affidavit submitted by the Secretary Mining today on the previous order. On the previous date, the court had asked the Secretary Mining whether the District Officer has the power to first impose a fine on the complaint, then issue a recovery notice and later waive the fine after hearing it.
Present that rule in the court, which the state government presented today through an affidavit, on which the petitioner expressed dissatisfaction and said that the District Magistrate does not have the power to review his own order. Here, first the District Magistrate himself imposed the fine and then gave a recovery notice. Later, after hearing the notice, the fine was waived. Which is the rule of the public authority which has the right to waive and punish everyone.
According to the case, social activist Bhuvan Pokhariya, resident of Chorlagia Nainital, has filed a PIL saying that in the year 2016-17, the then District Magistrate of Nainital waived the fine of more than Rs 50 crore for illegal mining and storage of many stone crushers. The District Officer waived the fine of only those stone crushers whose fine was in crores of rupees and did not waive the fine of those whose fine was less.
At the same time, when a complaint was made to the Chief Secretary and Secretary Mining, no action was taken on it and it was said that this is the privilege of the District Magistrate, when the petitioner sought a written reply from the government, till date he has not been given a written reply. After this, he sought an RTI in this regard and said that under which rule the District Magistrate has the right to waive the fine imposed on illegal mining and storage.
Inform through RTI, in response to which the Public Information Officer, Industrial Department, Uttarakhand said that it is not held under the public authority. It was said in the PIL that when the said rule is not held in the public authority, then how did the District Magistrate waive off the fine of crores of rupees imposed on stone crushers, then he complained to the Chief Secretary in 2020 and the Chief Secretary asked the Industrial Secretary to investigate it.
The Industrial Secretary appointed the District Officer Nainital as the investigating officer. The DM handed over its investigation to SDM Haldwani, which was not done, while the Industrial Department had asked to submit the investigation report on 21 October 2020, which was not submitted even after four years. In the PIL, the court has been demanded to take action on this, because it is a loss of revenue to the state.
