New Delhi, Aug 1 (IANS) A CBI Court in New Delhi has sentenced seven convicts, including two former public servants, in connection with the fraudulent revival of the Lok Priya Co-operative Group Housing Society (CGHS), an official statement said on Saturday. The convicted public servants are R.K. Shrivastava, the then Registrar of Co-operative Societies, and P.N. Manchanda, the then Assistant Registrar. The five private individuals convicted in the case are K.K. Wadhwa, Anil Kumar, Sunil Kumar, Devender Pal Singh, and Ravi Saluja.The two former public servants have been sentenced to two years of rigorous imprisonment and fined Rs 75,000 each for offences related to criminal misconduct. The five private individuals have also been awarded two years of rigorous imprisonment along with fines for offences involving cheating, criminal conspiracy, and the use of forged documents.The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had registered the case in September 2006 as part of its probe into the fraudulent revival of defunct or wound-up Co-operative Group Housing Societies that were originally registered between 1970 and 1980.

According to the investigation, the private accused entered into a criminal conspiracy with officials of the Office of the Registrar of Co-operative Societies to illegally revive the Lok Priya CGHS. As part of the conspiracy, forged and fabricated documents were allegedly used to secure the allotment of land from the Delhi Development Authority (DDA).After completion of investigation, the CBI filed a charge sheet on January 27, 2008 against the accused persons, before the competent Court in Delhi.After a detailed trial, the court convicted all seven accused on July 14. Subsequently, on July 30, the court pronounced the sentence, awarding two years of rigorous imprisonment and imposing fines on the convicts in accordance with the offences proved against them.Earlier on July 31, the CBI had seized documents and digital devices while searching commercial and residential premises at 10 locations, including Hyderabad and Vizianagaram, in a Rs 105.44 crore loan fraud committed by NCS Sugars against Punjab National Bank.

/IANS