Delhi HC issues notice to CBI on plea seeking probe in use of black money in alleged illegal, unauthorised TSR auto finance business

Delhi High Court on Thursday issued a notice to the Central Bureau of Investigation on a plea seeking a probe into the use of black money in alleged illegal and unauthorised TSR auto finance business.

It has been alleged that the business uses and rotates black money, and is running a parallel banking in the national capital.

The court has also sought an Action Taken Report (ATR) from the Delhi Government and Delhi Police in the matter.

Justice Asha Menon issued notices to the CBI, Delhi Government and Delhi Police on the plea moved by Auto Parivar, seeking a probe in the matter. The petitioner sought a direction for the registration of an FIR.

The court has directed the registry to send the copy of the petition to the Vigilance Department, through the Secretary, Transport Department of the Delhi Government and to the Delhi Police Commissioner to be forwarded to the Economic Offences Wing (EOW)/ Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO), for necessary action.

Delhi High Court has called for an ATR on the next date of hearing, which has been listed for October 18, 2022.

The petition said the wrongdoers are rotating huge amounts of unaccounted/black money in cash under the pretext of TSR auto financing business and are running parallel banking business without authorisation and are engaged in trading of auto permits.

The notices were accepted by the counsel for the respondents. However, the counsel for the Delhi Government and Delhi Police submitted that no complaints had been received in proper format which could have been easily made by petitioners and which would have been followed up by the Vigilance Department.

The counsel for the CBI also submitted that before issuing directions to the agency, the local police may be directed to conduct the inquiry in the matter and, if necessary, the CBI would always be willing to carry out the directions of this court.

The court, after hearing the submission of the counsels for the parties said, "In view of the submission made before this court, it appears that some inquiry would be required to be made in respect of the working of financers in this city and whether they do so within the parameters of the law."

The bench also said that the possible misuse of permits is also a cause of concern, as much as it impacts, apart from the exploitation of unwary, semi-literate, poor drivers of the TSR. "The possibility of economic offences being committed across the board, apart from corruption, would need to be investigated," the bench said.

The High Court further said that for the time being, the Delhi government/Delhi Police and the Transport Department of Delhi government/Vigilance may respectively proceed with the investigation of the crime angle and with regard to the allegation of corruption, treating this petition as a complaint to the police and to the Vigilance Department.

Advocate Sushil Kumar, counsel for the petitioner, submitted that there is a large-scale corruption in the RTO as well as misdeeds that are happening impacting the auto drives. He also submitted that permits are being transferred in cahoots with MLO and the RTO officials.

It was also submitted that though the Delhi Government had through its public notice of August 8, 2012, made it a condition precedent that the financiers will be the Non-bank financial institutions (NBFC), there were several proprietorship concerns that were financing purchase of TSRs and thereafter, filing cases before the Civil Courts to recover even the vehicles. It is further submitted that complaint to vigilance has also produced no results.

(ANI)

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