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The Vigilance Bureau's economic offences wing is currently investigating a case involving the alleged fraudulent allocation of residential plots under the Locally Displaced Persons (LDP) scheme of Ludhiana Improvement Trust (LIT). As part of their inquiry, the Bureau is planning to summon officials from a software company based in Bangalore, which had been contracted to develop an e-auction system for plot allotment.
Recently, the VB-EOW made an arrest in the case. The accused, Pardeep Kumar from Muktsar, is believed to have provided user IDs, passwords, and digital signatures to bidders, in addition to tampering with the e-auction process. The Vigilance Bureau is keen to understand how Pardeep managed to hack or manipulate the e-auction system, and they believe that the Bangalore-based company may be able to provide some insights.
Suba Singh Randhawa, the Senior Superintendent of Police at VB-EOW, explained the implications of the tampering with the e-auction system. According to him, the accused LIT officials exploited the tampering to sell plots to individuals of their choice. To participate in the e-auction, bidders require a user ID, password, and digital signature. Interestingly, a significant number of bidders obtained these credentials through Pardeep Kumar.
Randhawa went on to describe the modus operandi employed in the fraud. Suppose a plot had a bidding price of Rs 2.5 lakh. Pardeep, having access to multiple bidders' IDs and passwords, would manipulate the system to display an inflated bid amount of Rs 2.5 crore by adding extra zeros. Naturally, the legitimate bidders would retract their bids, leading to their cancellation. There are also allegations that the entire e-auction system may have been hacked or tampered with. The involvement of the Bangalore-based company is crucial in determining the exact nature of the fraudulent activities.
The official further revealed that Pardeep Kumar is a graduate and possesses a special diploma in computer science. He was considered an expert in his field. The investigators are also looking into how most bidders ended up approaching Pardeep for assistance in obtaining their user IDs and passwords. Additionally, the VB noted that Sub-Divisional Officer (SDO) Ankit Narang had been in contact with Pardeep Kumar, raising suspicions that Ankit may have facilitated his involvement in the fraud.
In conclusion, the Vigilance Bureau's economic offences wing is actively investigating the fraudulent allocation of residential plots under the LDP scheme. The recent arrest of Pardeep Kumar and the potential involvement of a Bangalore-based software company have brought new leads to the investigation. The Bureau is determined to uncover how the e-auction system was hacked or tampered with, and the cooperation of the software company is expected to shed light on the matter.
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