Court denies bail to contractor for fraud in Kashmir

Srinagar, Apr 27 (UNI) The Special Judge Anti-corruption here has denied bail to a contractor accused of a fraud in procuring orders worth Rs 1 crore for supply of steel furniture to Social Welfare Department.

The court also ordered arrest of some Small Scale Industries Development Corporation (SICOP) officials allegedly involved in the fraud. The official are evading arrest.

The Court observed that the accused contractor Zahoor Ahmed Wani, proprietor of M/S Indian Steel, had managed to get the supply orders for Social Welfare Department (SWD) through SICOP and opened fictitious accounts in Jammu and Kashmir Bank.

According to reports, the department had placed orders for the procurement of steel trunks, seed bins, and buckets with SICOP for supply of material through Small-Scale Industries (SSI) units.

The contractor managed to get all the supply orders through SICOP and opened an account at Jammu and Kashmir Bank Lal Chowk, in the name of MS Rafiq Metals at Hyderpora without the knowledge of the unit holder and received huge amount for supply of trunks in connivance with SICOP officials.

During scrutiny a sample of the procured materials was found to be below standard.

The court further said that besides the contractor some SICOP officials were also involved in the crime. The court ordered their immediate arrest.

The court observed that it is pertinent to mention that cost earlier appears to have been worked out by Marketing Manager and certain other officials of SICOP who are involved in the conspiracy inflating the rates for supply of the material.

UNI BAS SY KP1223