EXCLUSIVE: More trouble for officer accused in Ghatkopar hoarding collapse case

The Anti Corruption Bureau ACB has launched an inquiry into corruption allegations against suspended IPS officer Quaiser Khalid following a complaint forwarded by Maharashtra DGP Rashmi Shukla last month Sources indicate that the DGP received a complaint from a private individual accusing Khalid of corruption related to granting permissions for hoardings on railway landThe complainant alleges having paid Rs 30 lakh in cash to Khalid and 8000 USD to sponsor his trip to the US The complaint was lodged with DGP Rashmi Shukla on May 7 2024 six days before the Ghatkopar hoarding collapse that resulted in 17 fatalitiesKhalid had been suspended during the previous month following a report from the DGPrsquos office highlighting serious irregularities in the Ghatkopar hoarding case The ACB is currently investigating the corruption allegations against himAlleged misuse of powerAccording to a complaint filed with the DGP office by a private individual residing in Sakinaka Khalid allegedly misusing his position as railway commissioner defrauded the complainant of Rs 37 lakh The complainant alleges that Khalid assured a hoarding contract on railway premises at Dadar Tilak Bridge Dadar Railway Police Colony or Ghatkopar and received the amount in cash Reportedly Rs 10 lakh was delivered to Khalidrsquos residence while R20 lakh was handed over in cash to Arshad Khan at Shivaji Nagar who is purportedly a close associate of Khalid and a director in his wifersquos company The complaint provided specific dates and amounts paid to Khalid along with WhatsApp conversations detailing his trip to the US and payments amounting to 6000 for Khalidrsquos purchases as well as an additional 2000 transferred to a family member in the US at Khalidrsquos behest Due to these allegations of corruption the complaint was referred to the ACB for investigationA senior officer of the Maharashtra Police confirmed these developments to midday but declined to disclose more citing the ongoing investigation midday has obtained a copy of the complaint letter which contains startling revelations and WhatsApp exchanges involving the former railway commissionerThe fourpage complaint filed with the DGP office alleges that the complainant was introduced to Khalid by a Chembur resident at the time when Khalid held the position of commissioner of railways in February 2022 Khalid shared his contact number with the complainant and they subsequently met two or three timesPromise to resolve issuesAccording to the complaint during these meetings the complainant raised the issue of his hoardings at Dadar Tilak Bridge which were under judicial review Despite the ongoing legal proceedings the railways removed the hoardings To the complainantrsquos surprise in March 2022 he discovered that the hoarding contract had been awarded to lsquoGuju Adsrsquo without any tender process When he confronted Khalid about this issue Khalid allegedly stated that he already had a deal with Guju Ads and assured the complainant of providing another location for his hoardings either in Dadar Railway Colony or GhatkoparldquoAfter meeting Khalid and receiving assurance from him I paid Rs 10 lakh in cash as advance at his residence which was received by one of his close family members in April 2022rdquo the complainant stated providing Khalidrsquos residential address and the names of his close family members who received cash The complainant further stated that after making the payment the next day he visited Khalid in his office where he was reassured that the work would be completed ldquothough it would take some timerdquoFavours demanded in USAccording to the complaint on August 24 2022 Khalid informed him that he was in the US for some personal work Khalid also mentioned that he would be returning from JFK International Airport on September 7 2022 and requested the complainant to arrange accommodation for him in a fivestar property in the Queens area Khalid provided names of five different hotels and in a WhatsApp chat with the complainant allegedly stated ldquoOkay but it should include breakfast We may consider hotels in the Queens area toordquo as detailed in the letter submitted to the DGPrsquos officeThe complaint also alleged that during the US trip the friend of the complainant in the US gave his lsquoVisarsquo card to Khalid and the same was used for shopping worth 6100 USD Khalid said that he would return the amount after returning from the US However he later said that he would adjust the same with the hoarding contracts according to the complaintAccording to the allegations in the complaint letter submitted to the DGP Khalid called the complainant on September 15 2022 and instructed him to deposit 2000 in the account of his Khalidrsquos family member residing in the US Khalid asked the complainant to seek assistance from his US friend to which the complainant responded that the 6100 paid by his friend was already pending Allegedly Khalid stated that he would adjust this amount as well with the hoarding contractSubsequently the complainant deposited 2000 in the account of Khalidrsquos family member in the US The complainant then met Khalid regarding the hoarding contracts and Khalid showed him files that had been forwarded to the DGP office Following this Khalid allegedly asked the complainant to transfer R20 lakh to Pasbaneadab an NGO run by Khalid The complainant expressed inability to transfer funds to this account and instead handed over cash to Arshad Khan in Shivaji Nagar Govandi in December 2022 Khan is reported to be a close associate of Khalid and a director in a company where Khalidrsquos wife is also a directorKhan is also under investigation by the SIT in the Ghatkopar hoarding collapse case and has given a statement regarding an amount of R46 lakh suspected to be the proceeds of crime related to the hoarding collapse caseThe complaint further asserted that when he messaged Khalid requesting a meeting for urgent matters he was informed that a complaint had been lodged against Khalid and that the amount would be returned in a few days The complaint alleged that Khalid an IPS officer abused his authority and deceived him prompting the complaint to take legal action against himLack of acknowledgementThe letter was addressed to the CM home minister and the DGP who forwarded it to the ACB midday chose not to disclose the complainantrsquos identity When contacted the complainant denied making such complaints When the complaint letter which includes his name and address was forwarded to him he didnrsquot respond midday contacted Quaiser Khalid but he refused to comment17No of fatalities caused by hoarding collapseMay 13Day the hoarding collapsed in Ghatkopar