New Delhi, Jun 4 (IANS): The government Friday told the Delhi High Court that an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) official suspected to be involved in a 16,000-acre land scam involving the Kandla Port Trust in Gujarat has been barred from dealing with trust issues.

Rakesh Shrivastava, joint secretary (ports) and chief vigilance officer (CVO), ministry of shipping, shall not handle any matter related to the Kandla Port Trust, the central government told the court.

The government's decision followed the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) plea June 1, seeking the court's intervention on the removal of the official from the ministry in order to carry out a fair investigation into the case.

Additional Solicitor General (ASG) A.S. Chandhiok said that the responsibility of the CVO shall be taken over by Rajiv Gupta, another joint secretary.

"As far as the Kandla Port Trust is concerned, (matter related to) it shall be looked after by secretary, ministry of shipping, directly," the ASG told the division bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Sanjeev Khanna.

The CBI filed its status report about the scam alleging that Shrivastava was one of the suspects who granted prime land near Kandla Port on lease to private parties at throw-away prices for development of industries, including salt manufacturing units.

Around 6,500 acres of land has been earmarked for the development of a special economic zone near the port, the CBI said.

"He processed various files regarding renewal of leases and his role is being critically examined," the CBI said.

The court was hearing a public interest litigation filed by the Centre for Public Interest Litigation alleging irregularities in granting the prime land to private players.

The case would be heard next Aug 24.