A special court in Ahmedabad has handed a 5 year prison sentence to former IAS officer Pradeep Nirankarnath Sharma in a major money laundering case that also caused heavy financial loss to the government.
The court found that while serving as DLPC chief, Sharma allegedly worked with others to illegally allot government land in Varshmedi village of Taluka Anjar in the Bhuj region to Welspun India Ltd and its group companies. The land parcels were given at rates between fifteen to eighteen rupees per square metre instead of the fixed government rate of seventy eight rupees per square metre. This resulted in a loss of one crore twenty lakh rupees to the government exchequer.
Based on the Enforcement Directorate investigation, Sharma was also accused of laundering money by routing “illegal gratification through his wife Shyamal P. Sharma, who was made a 30% partner in Value Packaging Private Limited, a firm associated with the Welspun Group, without any initial capital investment”.
“An amount of ₹22 lakh, received in her NRO account with Bank of India, and ₹7.5 lakh as a goodwill payment, are alleged to be illegal gratification for extending undue favours to the Welspun Group. The investment of ₹1 lakh made in his wife’s name in January 2008 was used to channelise ₹28,17,407 (including profit share, goodwill amount, and interest) as profit distribution,” the court order stated.
The court also noted that the funds were used to repay a housing loan for a house in Gandhinagar and to purchase agricultural land in Dehgam. Investigators further alleged that hawala routes were used through illegal channels to transfer around one crore rupees to the United States, along with transfers into his wife’s bank accounts in the US from third parties.
“Having regard to the facts of the case that, the accused was an IAS officer holding the post of District Collector and District Magistrate and has misused his official position by indulging into corrupt practice and also indulging himself in offence of money laundering disentitles him for any discretion by directing sentence to run concurrently,” the court observed.
The court also refused his request to run his sentences at the same time, stating that offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act are separate and serious, and must be punished independently.
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