In a major action against negligence, Kumaon Commissioner Deepak Rawat uncovered serious irregularities during an inspection of Haldwani tehsil. On Wednesday, he raided the house of Kanungo Ashraf Ali and found multiple files and original registers related to Section 143 cases stored there. Officials confirmed that Ali had been running tehsil-related work from his home.
The commissioner had earlier demanded details of pending Section 143 cases, but staff failed to provide accurate information even after half an hour. When a few incomplete files were finally presented, Rawat summoned Ashraf Ali. On questioning, Ali admitted that the records were kept at his residence. Following this, Rawat immediately reached his house in Ujala Nagar on Bareilly Road, where he found a heap of official documents. On further inquiry, Ali revealed he had not conducted any site inspections in these cases, and files were deliberately left pending.
Rawat termed the act of keeping government records at home as a grave lapse and ordered the District Magistrate to conduct a detailed probe. He instructed that further action will follow once the inquiry report is submitted. Magistrate Gopal Singh Chauhan and Tehsildar Manisha Bisht were also present during the inspection.
It is worth noting that Ashraf Ali had earlier been caught red-handed in 2022 while accepting a bribe of ₹15,000 in Sitarganj, for which Vigilance arrested and jailed him.
During the same inspection, Rawat also pulled up staff over five cases pending for three to five years without resolution. He directed Tehsildar Manisha Bisht to review such cases every 14 days and ensure disposal of all five within the next three months.
