Examiner Bureau | Srinagar:
Ten engineers presently serving in the Public Works (R&B) Department are facing cases registered by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) or the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), with several having been arrested and suspended, the Jammu and Kashmir Government informed the Legislative Assembly on Friday.
The details were furnished by the R&B Department in response to a question by MLA Ranbir Singh Pathania regarding alleged administrative irregularities, including the premature transfer of engineers facing Regular Departmental Action (RDA), Crime Branch, ACB or other criminal cases.
According to the government’s reply, the cases involve allegations ranging from bribery and alleged embezzlement of public funds to possession of assets disproportionate to known sources of income.
Among those listed is Manzoor Ahmad Dar, In-charge Executive Engineer (Mechanical), who is facing FIR No. 02/2026 registered by ACB Anantnag. The government said Dar was serving in the Jal Shakti Department on deputation and was suspended following his arrest by the ACB.
Mubarak Ahmad Ganaie, Assistant Executive Engineer (Civil), R&B Sub-Division Sopore, is facing FIR No. 13/2024 registered by ACB Baramulla. He was suspended following his arrest and attached to the office of the Chief Engineer, PW(R&B), North Kashmir. His RDA is under consideration.
Sanjay Koul, Junior Engineer (Civil) in the office of the Superintending Engineer, Udhampur-Reasi Circle, is facing CBI case RC0042021A0012. He was suspended following his arrest by the CBI, while departmental proceedings are at the concluding stage.
Mubarak Ahmad Wani, Junior Engineer, R&B Sub-Division Dooru, is facing FIR No. 05/2023 registered by ACB Anantnag. The government said he was suspended after his arrest and attached to the office of the Chief Engineer, PW(R&B), Kashmir. Departmental action is under consideration.
The list also includes Shakeel Ahmad Dar, then Assistant Engineer, Block Pahalgam, against FIR No. 05/2022 registered by ACB Anantnag. The government said he was allegedly caught accepting a bribe, following which he was suspended and departmental proceedings initiated. His RDA is at the concluding stage.
Hakeem Imtiyaz, then Junior Engineer in the R&B PWD Shopian Division, is facing FIR No. 06/2020 registered by ACB Anantnag. He was suspended in connection with an alleged embezzlement-of-funds case and attached to the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Shopian.
Farooq Ahmad Shah, then Assistant Executive Engineer, PW(R&B) Division Handwara and now In-charge Executive Engineer of the division, is facing FIR No. 18/2022 registered by ACB Baramulla over alleged possession of assets disproportionate to known sources of income. The investigation remains pending with the ACB.
Liyaqat Javid Sheikh Gojar, Assistant Engineer, PMGSY Division Thathri, is facing CBI/ACB Jammu case RC0042026A0008. He was suspended and attached to the office of the Superintending Engineer, PW(R&B) Circle, Doda-Kishtwar, while the case remains under investigation.
The government also listed Arshad Amin, then Junior Engineer in the REW/BDO Office at Changa, Doda, against FIR No. 06/2021 registered by ACB Central Jammu, and Tasaduq Reyaz, then Junior Engineer at the BDO Office, Hardaboora, against FIR No. 08/2022 registered by ACB Baramulla.
It said both officials were arrested while posted in the Rural Development Department and that RDAs had been initiated against them.
The government, however, rejected the allegation that engineers facing corruption or criminal cases had been prematurely transferred.
It said 124 Executive Engineers and 402 Assistant Executive Engineers of the Civil and Mechanical wings had been transferred or adjusted following promotions and in view of departmental requirements. Junior Engineers, it said, were transferred or adjusted by the concerned Chief Engineers and Engineer-in-Chief in accordance with the applicable transfer policy.
The department specifically stated that no in-service engineer facing a CBI, ACB, RDA or criminal case had been prematurely transferred. Engineers facing serious misconduct charges, it said, had been suspended, while disciplinary proceedings or RDAs had been initiated in other cases, with subsequent adjustment dependent on the outcome of the proceedings.
On alleged irregularities in tendering, the government said no increase in single-tender allotments or arbitrary cancellation of tenders in violation of procurement procedures had been reported since 2024 in the Pir Panjal Zone or Nowshera Division.
Only two tenders in the Pir Panjal Zone during 2025-26 were allotted on a single-bid basis at the second call, it said, after compliance with GFR-2017 and relevant Ministry of Road Transport and Highways guidelines.
The department further said no instances of duplicate funding, misrepresentation of Rural Development Department roads or execution of works without following the prescribed tendering procedure had been reported in REW Rajouri. It clarified that there was no Nowshera Division under REW Rajouri.
On the 2020 Bitumen/Tar case, the government said the matter remained under investigation by the ACB.
The Mughal Road Project case is pending before a Division Bench of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh. Departmental arguments were completed on September 17-18, while the matter was listed for September 26 for arguments on behalf of Hindustan Construction Company Ltd.
On alleged irregular appointments and other issues in the Jammu and Kashmir Projects Construction Corporation (JKPCC), the government said Fact Finding Committees had been constituted in 2018 and 2019 and their reports accepted by the competent authority.
It also provided the status of disciplinary proceedings against former JKPCC officials, including cases in which proceedings had been dropped and others that remain pending.
The Assembly is currently holding its sixth session, scheduled from September 21 to September 30, 2026.
