By Surinder Sharma & Arfat Khan
Jammu: Famous for encouraging largel scale illegal constructions in Channi Himmat area in blatant violation of Jammu Master Plan 2032, Enforcement Inspector Gopal Krishan Gupta -the King of unauthorised constructions now incarnated himself as ‘Lord’ of illegal constructions in Jammu Municipal Corporation.
This new stature has been acquired as he openly brag that neither his Commissioner-Secretary nor any officer in Anti Corruption Bureau could dare to touch him.
Sources in Jammu Municipal Corporation revealed that there are lot of complaints and RTI regarding endless illegal constructions pertaining to ward of this ‘Lord’ are pending in the cupboards of enforcement wing.
“Gopal have a history of retaining his posting in Channi Himmat and surrounding areas where rate for change of land use from residential to commercial in an unauthorised way is ranging from 5 lakh to 8 lakh per shutter and rate for raising unauthorised construction is varied from 2 lakh to 5 lakh depending upon the size of construction area” revealed a senior enforcement official.
To test the authenticity of allegations against Gopal, JKGN shared a detail of one illegal construction under way behind Masjid in Malik Market.
Surprisingly, when we asked for update on said illegal structure, the Lord of illegal constructions Gopal Krishan tries to grease palm of JKGN team with Rs 5000 amount which was refused plainly.
He has amassed vast money by encouraging illegal constructions wherever he remained posted. From flats in Delhi to plots as well as rental property in Jammu today he possessed several things beyond his known sources of income, alleged another colleague of Gopal.
Sharing details with documents regarding endless list of illegal structures which were constructed with the help of this ‘Lord’ enforcement inspector, a senior resident and RTI activists of Channi Himmat said “Gopal is a one man authority in JMC which can do any damn illegal construction with impunity not only in his alloted but also in any part of JMC wards”
He usually flaunt his close proximity with Mayor Chander Mohan Gupta as well as upright Commissioner–Secretary Housing and Urban Development Dheeraj Gupta, alleged an inspector of enforcement wing preferring anonymity.
If the officials like Gopal Krishan Gupta has assumed such a gigantic stature for indulging in unstoppable corrupt practices , the Governor Satya Pal Malik should pull men and machinery of ACB to crackdown on such corrupt person which are eating up the revenue of JMC and causing loss to the earning of state government by passing the necessary site approval permission and encouraging illegal constructions.
(To be continued)