New Delhi: A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Delhi High Court seeking a CBI probe into the Drone Federation India (DFI), formerly known as the Drone Federation of India, over allegations of forgery of government documents.
The plea, filed by RTI activist Tej Pratap Singh, claims that DFI forged a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to circumvent legal obstacles and rebrand the organization as the "Drone Federation of India."
The fraudulent document was allegedly submitted to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA), misleading the public into believing the organization had official government endorsement, according to the plea.
Plea further alleges that DFI has in collusion with Pioneer Flying Academy (Respondent) issued drone pilot certifications to two individuals, without securing any approval or authorization from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation or Ministry of Civil Aviation. These certifications were issued to individuals associated with one, M/s Quidich Innovation Labs (Respondent), to operate drones.
Since the certified pilots had used these certifications for covering Indian Premier League, held in Dubai senior officer of Dubai Civil Aviation Authority (DCAA) had written to DGCA to verify the authenticity of these certifications, it said.
However, DGCA has failed to initiate any enquiry and has even refrained from cooperating with DCAA for reasons best known to it. The entity has not only escaped from the investigations but also organized the Bharat Drone Shakti Event at the Air Force Station, Hindon, Uttar Pradesh, where DFI used pilots without valid licenses for flying drones in the Red Zone, plea added.
According to the petitioner, the body, by forging a letter from the regulatory authority, is not only attempting to project patronage from the Government of India but has also evaded accountability for its actions as described above. It is submitted that the allegations are grave and pose a serious threat to the regulatory safety and security of the drone industry, while also fostering corruption within Government Departments. (ANI)
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