CBI summons Akhilesh Yadav on Friday in illegal mining cases

The CBI has summoned Samajwadi Party president and former Uttar Pradesh chief minister Akhilesh Yadav as a witness for questioning on Friday in illegal mining cases five years after registering the caseIn a notice issued under section 160 of CrPC the agency asked him to appear before it on February 29 in connection with the case registered in 2019 officials saidThe section allows a police officer to summon witnesses in a probeThe case pertains to the issuance of mining leases in alleged violation of etendering process The Allahabad High Court had ordered the probeIt is alleged that public servants allowed illegal mining during 201216 when Yadav was chief minister and illegally renewed licences despite a ban by the National Green Tribunal on miningIt is alleged that the officers allowed theft of minerals extorted money from leaseholders and driversThe CBI had filed seven preliminary enquiries in 2016 on the directions of the Allahabad High Court to probe the case of illegal mining of minor mineralsThe agency had alleged that the then chief minister Akhilesh Yadavs office had cleared 13 projects in a single day officials saidThey had said Yadav who also held the mining portfolio for sometime had cleared 14 leases of which 13 were cleared on February 17 2013 in violation of etendering processThe Central Bureau of Investigation CBI claimed that on February 17 2013 the leases were granted by the district magistrate of Hamirpur B Chandrakala after getting approval from the chief ministers office in violation of its 2012 etender policy which was ratified by the Allahabad High Court on January 29 that yearThe CBI had carried out searches at 14 locations in January 2019 in connection with its FIR against 11 people including IAS officer B Chandrakala Samajwadi Party MLC Ramesh Kumar Mishra and Sanjay Dixit who unsuccessfully contested the 2017 assembly election on a BSP ticket to probe the alleged illegal mining of minor minerals in Hamirpur district during 201216Yadav who was the chief minister of the state between 2012 and 2017 held the mining portfolio during 201213 apparently bringing his role under scanner according to the FIRHe was succeeded by Gayatri Prajapati who took charge as mining minister in 2013 and was arrested in 2017 following a complaint of rape by a woman residing in ChitrakootThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever