CBI court to hear Manesar land scam case on July 26

The CBI special court on Tuesday fixed July 26 and August 6 as the hearing dates for the Manesar land scam case and the Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) plot allotment case respectively.

Former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda had appeared before the CBI special court earlier in the day in connection with the two cases.

On May 15, 2017, the CBI had questioned Hooda over the alleged financial irregularities in the acquisition of land in Manesar.

The case pertains to the alleged purchase of land from farmers in Gurgaon for Rs 100 crore when the actual worth, as per market rate, was Rs 1,500 crore.

The land was bought during the period between August 2004 and August 2007. The Congress government in Haryana, led by Hooda, remained in power from March 2005 to October 2014.

The purchase, according to the CBI, was made during August 2004 and August 2007, under "threat and false apprehension of acquisition of the land by the Congress government in Haryana".

In December last year, the investigation agency had filed a chargesheet against Hooda and Congress leader Motilal Vora for alleged fraudulent allotment of land to AJL in Panchkula in 2005.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had attached an institutional plot belonging to the AJL under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) in the matter.