Pratapgarh: A probe has been initiated against Sub Divisional Magistrate Vineet Upadhayay, who was suspended by the Uttar Pradesh government over 'disciplinary' issues. SDM was suspended after he staged a protest outside the residence of Pratapgarh District Magistrate alleging 'nexus of corrupt officials'.
According to sources, Vineet Upadhyay has been attached with Revenue Board, Prayagraj for now and an inquiry will be conducted by Prayagraj Commissioner into the allegations against him.
Upadhyay had also accused the present SDM Mohanlal Gupta of illegally occupying the land for residential and agricultural purposes. He also blew the whistle about the land mafia in the Lalganj's Dhadhuwa Gajan following which government ordered the education department officers to initiate an action against him.
According to Upadhyay, he was harassed because of a nexus of corrupt officers in the area. He stated that the issue began when he was posted as SDM in Pratapgarh district and was also a member of-three member committee that probed the illegal allotment of land by the previous SDM. A series of alleged irregularities in the allotment of land in Lalganj division was brought to the fore by him.
He said, "ADM(Finance and Revenue) Shatrugan Vaishya was involved in corruption and we had written this in our report, adding that DM Rupesh Kumar was shielding them.
He also alleged that he was 'pressured' to stop the probe into the allegations of corruption against land mafia.
READ: Pratapgarh SDM sits on dharna outside DM's house; suspended
"I had submitted a report against the on-going land mafia of Devendra Mishra who had acquired land in the name of a school which did not exist. He was running a school at a different location," Vineet Upadhyay said.
I had records of all this, so they instigated a group of lawyers who got into a tiff with me one day. I tried to pull down the rifle of a home guard but the lawyers, however, alleged that I was snatching the rifle. I had not held the rifle even for a second. A show-cause was issued to me by ADM (F&R) Vaishya over the issue that I had not behaved in a proper manner… He had malice against me and hence, a report was sent to the government for action against me,” said Upadhyay,
Yesterday, Upadhyay sat on a dharna outside the DM's house for more than four hours following which he was arrested in the evening.
DM Rupesh Kumar said, "We are investigating the allegations levelled by Upadhyay with the help of online circulation of the press release. We had never received any complaints against it."
Vineet Upadhyay's claims of corruption and the land mafia has raised eyebrows of all the district officers and everybody is tight-lipped on the sensitive matter.
