SRINAGAR: The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Jammu and Kashmir has filed a chargesheet before the Special Judge Anti-Corruption Court, Baramulla, in connection with the illegal appointment of 82 persons in the Municipal Committee (MC) Sumbal, Bandipora, during 2009–2010.
The action followed a verification process initiated on the basis of information received about large-scale irregularities in Urban Local Bodies across Kashmir. It was alleged that various appointments had been made fraudulently in different municipal bodies in exchange for bribes.
“The ACB probe revealed that officers and officials of MC Sumbal, including the then President and the In-charge Executive Officer, in collusion with 82 accused beneficiaries, made illegal appointments to multiple posts in violation of government rules and without any legal competence. The salaries of these appointees were drawn by Abdul Rashid Shah, then I/C Executive Officer, who also attested their service details,” reads a statement.
“FIR No. 13/2015 was registered under section 5(1)(d) read with 5(2) of the J&K Prevention of Corruption Act (Samvat 2006) and sections 120-B, 201 RPC at Police Station VOK (now ACB Baramulla). The investigation found that appointments were made without any transparent recruitment process, advertisement, or adherence to eligibility criteria. Several posts against which appointments were made were either not sanctioned or not included in the schedules defined under the 2008 recruitment rules,” it adds.
The investigation also revealed that many of the appointments were based on recommendations from unauthorised bodies, including the then Speaker of the Assembly, MLA Sonawari, and Municipal Council resolutions. These recommendations lacked legal standing under the prevailing recruitment rules. The accused officers allegedly adopted a pick-and-choose policy, favouring select candidates.
The ACB found that the Jammu and Kashmir Urban Local Body Institution (Management) Service Recruitment Rules 2008 and the Jammu and Kashmir Municipal Act 2000 were blatantly violated. Neither the President nor the Executive Officer of the Municipal Committee was legally empowered to make such appointments.
Following the investigation, the government granted sanction to prosecute Abdul Rashid Shah, who was also prematurely retired from service but later reinstated by a High Court order.
On June 5, 2025, the ACB filed a chargesheet against Ghulam Ahmad Wani alias Gulzar (then President MC Sumbal), Abdul Rashid Shah (then I/C Executive Officer), and 82 beneficiaries under sections 5(1)(d) read with 5(2) of the J&K Prevention of Corruption Act and sections 120-B and 201 RPC before the Anti-Corruption Court in Baramulla. (KNO)
