Commissioner of Pathankot corp'n convicted in bribery case

A local court today convicted the commissioner of the Pathankot municipal corporation in a bribery case registered against him in 2012.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Rajiv Kalra sentenced commissioner Jai Pal Singh to three years of rigorous imprisonment and also slapped a fine of Rs 10,000 on him.
According to the public prosecutor, a building was erected in violation of construction by-laws in the area of College Road here by one Parbhal Sharma, long time back.
Upon alleged repeated threats to demolish illegal structure and demands of bribe from the commissioner, Sharma had moved the Vigilance Bureau and lodged a complaint in this connection against him.

Sharma in his complaint has alleged that he was approached by the commissioner, who demanded Rs 16 lakh as bribe for regularising the illegal structure raised by him.
The corporation had already issued notices to Sharma for alleged violation of building by-laws.

On receipt of complaint, the officials of the Bureau swung into action and on August 30, 2012, the officials raided the residences of Singh alongwith that of the complainant.
The officials alleged that the deal between the complainant (Sharma) and the accused (Singh) was finalised for Rs 16 lakh for not taking action on the violation of the building by-laws.

As part of payment, Sharma offered a sum of Rs 2.50 lakh which was accepted by the commissioner, who was caught red-handed, they said.
A case under section 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act was registered against the accused.
Singh, meanwhile while talking to the media claimed he had been framed and that he would file an appeal against the orders of the Additional Sessions Judge of Pathankot.
The Municipal Corporation of Pathankot was earlier having a status of a council, and was upgraded to a corporation on July 26, 2011 after Pathankot was constituted as a new district of Punjab.

Singh, a Punjab Civil Service (PCS) officer was appointed as the first commissioner of the Corporation and had taken over the charge from August 1 in 2011.