Jammu, Mar 6: Chairperson State Accountability Commission Justice (Retd) YP Nargotra today allowed time sought by the state counsels for filing replying on behalf of the chief minister and his advisors to the notice issued by the Commission in a complaint regarding appointment of advisors and ministers in the state.
 Senior Advocate Gourav Pachnanda with AAG AM Magray appeared for the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Mubarak Gul and Devinder Rana and sought time for filling objection in notice issued by the SAC.
 The SAC had initiated a regular probe in a complaint pertaining to the grant of status of Cabinet Ministers or State Ministers to Political Advisors, Chairmen and Vice Chairmen of Boards.
 Pertinently, some of the respondents have already approached the state High Court, which has stayed the proceedings against them.
 Meanwhile, Finance Minister Abdul Rahim Rather has filed objections in the notice issued by the SAC in another case pertaining to Smart Card contract case.
 In the objections, he has challenged the notice issued by SAC on February 17, 2012 on the ground that the complaint filed by some unknown organization was nothing but an attempt on the part of political opponents to defame him and tarnish his image in the public.
 In the objection it has been submitted that decision of the Finance Department in this regard was taken at the level of administrative secretary and the file was not put up to the Finance Minister, probably because the department had shown its reservation in the conveying concurrence to the release of payment as the powers to relax the codal procedure would vest in the cabinet and not the department.
 That the IT department, it said, accordingly place the matter before the Cabinet on August 19, 2011 for obtaining sanction to the execution of the project for installation of Smart Card Based Attendance Monitoring System in Civil Secretariat, Jammu and Srinagar by the IT Department through J&K Bank “out of procedure” as one time exception and for the release of the payment of Rs 24, 82, 061 to the J&K Bank for installation of the said project, the Cabinet approved the proposal.

Lastupdate on : Tue, 6 Mar 2012 21:30:00 Makkah time
Lastupdate on : Tue, 6 Mar 2012 18:30:00 GMT
Lastupdate on : Wed, 7 Mar 2012 00:00:00 IST