30 October,2009 06:27 PM IST | | Vinod Kumar Menon
A public interest litigation (PIL) has been filed before the Bombay High Court on Friday against the bulletproof jackets used by Mumbai poice during 26/11. The PIL states that the jacketsu00a0were of inferior quality.
Advocate Y P Singh filed the petition on behalf of the social worker petitioner Sanjay Daundkar.
As per the PIL, bullets fired by terrorists on 26 November 2008 pierced these sub-standard jackets leading to thedeath of three brave police officers Hemant Karkare, Ashok Kamte and Vijay Salaskar.
"We want justice for the death of senior police officials (JT CP Hemant Karkare, Additional CP Ashok Kamte and encounter specialist Vijay Salaskar) to ensure that the heartless corruption which happens rampantly in the procurement of bullet proof jackets is accounted for."
"Transparency is the primary ingredient of police efficiency on which the happiness of the society is depended," said IPS officer turned lawyer Y P Singh.
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The matter will come up for hearing before the PIL bench after the court reopens (afterDiwali vacation) on November 5.
The petition states that as the government refrained from taking appropriate action for enforcing accountability of the officers for this merciless act of corruption and the petitioner has carried out his own probe and has found disturbing facts.u00a0
|
Date |
EVENTS |
|
Upto 1978 |
The Central Stores Purchase Organisation, Government of Maharashtra, issued manual for Office Procedure For Purchase Of Stores By the Government Departments. This Manual prescribes procedures for effecting purchases in Government Departments. Office of the Commissioner of Police was required to follow the procedures contained therein. |
|
2nd January, 2002 |
Further instructions were issued through a Government Resolution by the Industry, Energy and Labour Department stipulating additional conditions for effecting purchases. |
|
2001 - 2002 |
Funds were provided by the Central Government for the police modernisation. Inter alia, it was decided to procure 55 Nos. Bullet-Proof Jackets for the police officers fighting terrorists and criminals. |
|
6th December, 2001 |
A tender enquiry was issued by the purchase cell by the Commissioner of Police, Mumbai to buy Bullet-Proof Jackets. |
|
3rd January, 2002 |
NTB Hi Tech Ceramics, a firm from Pune, submitted quotation. |
|
30th March, 2002 |
A letter indicating provisional acceptance of the tender of NTB Hi Tech Ceramics was issued. This was subject to approval of various conditions. |
|
30th March, 2002 |
A proforma invoice indicating that the material had been despatched was intriguingly issued on 30.3.2002 itself, i.e. on the date when the tentative acceptance of tender letter was issued. |
|
4th June, 2002 |
The tender was finally accepted and order was placed for the supply of 55 Nos. Bullet Proof Jackets. |
|
April-June 2002 |
The order of supply of 55 Nos. Bullet-Proof Jackets was enhanced to 110 nos. by ordering an additional 55 Nos. jackets bearing an additional value of Rs 12.35 lakh. This was against rules. |
|
2002-2004 |
110 bulletproof jackets were supplied, which were accepted even though they were of poor quality. Payments were also made accordingly to the tune of Rs 24.71 lakh. |
|
2004 |
The Bullet-Proof Jackets were tested and found sub-standard. Accordingly, it was decided to return the jackets and the payment recovered. |
|
2nd September, 2004 |
An amount of Rs 24.71 lakh was recovered from the supplier NTB Hi Tech Ceramics and the amount deposited with the Reserve Bank of India. |
|
September to December 2004 |
NTB Hi Tech Ceramics re-supplied the goods. The said goods were regarded as of proper quality and it was decided to accept the goods and to make the payments again. These jackets during the 26/11 attacks failed completely and which revealed that they were of sub-standard nature. |
|
7th January, 2005 |
A bill was prepared and the same was submitted to government treasury for withdrawing the amount. |
|
14th July, 2005 |
The state treasury issued a cheque for an amount of Rs 24.71 lakh and the same was handed over to M/s. NTB Hi Tech Ceramics. |
|
26th November, 2008 |
Terrorists attacked the city of Mumbai in a big way. These Bullet-Proof Jackets were worn by the senior police officers under the impression that they would be able to fight the terrorists with adequate protection. However, when the terrorists fired at the cops who were under the impression that they were safe with such vests, the bullets pierced through the said vests killing three officers namely Shri Hemant Karkare, Shri Ashok Kamte and Shri Vijay Salaskar. |
|
8th December, 20081 |
The Petitioner filed an application under the Right to Information Act, 2005, calling for the copy of the file of the purchase of the Bullet-Proof Jackets. |
|
15th December, 2008 |
Since the matter was relating to the question of life of people, as such under the 7(1) of the RTI it was requested to provide information within 48 hours. |
|
17th December, 2008 |
The request to supply information within 48 hours was denied. However, it was said that the information would be given in 30 daysu00e2u0080u2122 time i.e. around 10.1.2009. |
|
January to April, 2009 |
The Petitioner pursued the matter with the Commissioner of Police for providing information. However, no such information was provided during the stipulated time of 30 days. |
|
24th April, 2009 |
Commissioner of Police informed that the file was lost and hence the information could not be provided. |
|
29th May, 2009 |
The Petitioner filed an additional application for obtaining information. |
|
10th September, 2009 |
The Petitioner was informed by the PIO that some information could be given from other related desks in the office of the Commissioner of Police. |
|
3rd week of September, 2009 |
The Petitioner got some skeletal information from Accounts Department relating to disbursement of the amount. The skeletal papers indicated a big fraud happened in the purchase of the said jackets. |
|
June 2009 |
Without doing any enquiry into the matter the Chief Minister declared that there was no irregularity in the matter related to the bullet-proof jackets and the charges were baseless. He dismissed all reports in this reference. |
Since in this matter senior police officers have lost their lives and yet the administration is completely insensitive to the apparent eloquent evidence, the petitioner in his petition has demanded the following:
(A) THAT a proper enquiry be ordered so that the delinquent public servants are brought within the realm of accountability imposed through criminal, civil and administrative laws. In this sequence, either an independent enquiry committee be set-up or else the matter handed over to the CBI for investigation.
(B) THAT the Commissioner of Police be ordered to take action under section 7 of the Maharashtra Public Records Act, 2005 and to take steps for the recovery of this lost sensitive file on bullet-proof jackets.
(C) THAT the said Bullet-Proof Jackets tested by a neutral authorities such as the DRDO or the army, or by honest officers in the police at their firing range, and to check if they complied with the prescribed specifications or otherwise, and then to take action against the responsible officers if the same are found sub-standard.
(D) THAT these killer bullet-proof jackets be taken out from use at once by the Commissioner of Police, since they provide armour only to half of the chest and stomach and that they do not cover the neck, full chest and groin which is a requirement as per the specifications.
(E) THAT compensation be provided at the cost of the delinquent officers and private persons, for the families of those who lost their lives because of the grave acts of omission and commission by such delinquent public servants and private persons.
(F) THAT the Respondent No2 be ordered to place all the delinquent officers under suspension till the time the enquiry in the case is over.
