On Tuesday, 31st December, the Central Government granted permission to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to prosecute IAS officer Kumar Rajeev Ranjan for his alleged involvement in the issuance of arms licenses illegally in Jammu and Kashmir. The official order accessed by media, in this case, reveals that Ranjan, a 2010-batch IAS officer currently serving as the Revenue Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir, has been sanctioned for offences under anti-corruption laws.
As per the reports, the Deputy Solicitor General of India Vishal Sharma was informed by the Ministry of Personnel, Public Grievances, and Pensions that approval for Ranjan’s prosecution in a 2018 CBI case had been accorded. According to a previous communication, the sanction under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 2006, was granted on November 28th, 2024. The charges include Section 5(2) of the Act, which pertains to criminal misconduct by public servants.
Notably, the CBI officials are investigating a large scam case involving the illegal issuance of arms licenses in Jammu and Kashmir. It is believed that over 2.74 lakh arms licenses were issued in the then-state between 2012 and 2016. As per the allegations, the licenses were issued by the district magistrates, deputy commissioners, and licensing authorities in exchange for bribes amounting to crores of rupees.
The officials disclosed that fraudulent and fake licenses were issued by district magistrates across eight districts in Jammu and Kashmir in exchange for monetary benefits. The eight districts where such practices continued for around 4 years included Kupwara, Baramulla, Shopian, Pulwama, Udhampur, Kishtwar, Rajouri, and Doda.
It was also revealed later that around 95% of these licenses granted illegally were given to individuals who were not residents of Jammu and Kashmir or posted in the jurisdictions of the issuing districts.
Reports suggest that the scam was initially exposed by the Rajasthan Anti-Terror Squad (ATS) in 2017. The investigation by the authorities then led to multiple arrests.
Following this, the CBI in the year 2018 formally registered the case after receiving clearance from the Jammu and Kashmir government and subsequent notification by the central government. The investigation was handed over to the CBI by the then-Governor NN Vohra after being initially handled by the Jammu and Kashmir Police.
Ranjan, along with retired officer Itrit Hussain Rafiqui, both of whom served as District Magistrates of Kupwara, were arrested by the CBI on March 1st, 2020. Following his arrest, Ranjan who was serving as the Chief Executive Officer of the Metropolitan Regulatory Authority and Vice Chairman of the Jammu Development Authority, was suspended by the Jammu and Kashmir government. In February 2021, he was reinstated after a review committee recommended his service return and was subsequently posted as Additional Secretary in the Revenue Department.
The CBI investigation revealed Ranjan and Rafiqui’s involvement during their respective tenures as District Development Commissioners of Kupwara, from 2015 to 2016 and 2013 to 2015.
