Live
- PKL Season 11: U Mumbai meet UP Yoddhas in opening clash of exciting second leg in Noida
- Cong divides people on caste & religion lines for political gains: Shahnawaz Hussain
- Pushpa-2: The Rule to Launch Grand Promotional Tour Across Seven Indian Cities
- Maha polls: Congress accuses BJP of pursuing ‘divide and cut’ policy to divert attention
- His currency supply has ended: Ashwini Choubey's jibe at Tejashwi
- Avoid challenging constitutional institutions: VP Dhankhar
- Maha polls: BJP hurls questions at INDIA bloc amid Ulema Board's conditional support to MVA
- Regional rural banks must empower MSMEs via flagship govt schemes: FM Sitharaman
- Jemimah Rodrigues credits backing from Brisbane Heat teammates for classy 61-run knock
- Stalin in Virudhunagar district as part of statewide tour to monitor govt schemes
New Delhi: Removal of Kejriwal’s pvt secy will pave way for probe says BJP
It was necessary to remove Kumar from the post as his appointment was “illegal” and he was under the scanner of agencies in connection with a money-laundering case linked to the now-scrapped excise policy of the city government: Delhi BJP vice-president Kapil Mishra
New Delhi : BJP leaders on Thursday said the removal of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s private secretary Bibhav Kumar from his post by the Vigilance Directorate was an administrative decision that will pave the way for a probe into the alleged excise policy scam.
It was necessary to remove Kumar from the post as his appointment was “illegal” and he was under the scanner of agencies in connection with a money-laundering case linked to the now-scrapped excise policy of the city government, Delhi BJP vice-president Kapil Mishra said, adding that his removal will now pave the way for an impartial investigation in the matter.
In an order on Wednesday, the Delhi government’s Vigilance Directorate terminated the service of Kejriwal’s private secretary Bibhav Kumar over alleged violations of rules and procedures in his appointment. No immediate reaction was available from the ruling AAP in Delhi over Kumar’s termination of services.
The anti-corruption stand and high moral ground claimed by the AAP and its leaders like Kejriwal have fallen flat with Kumar’s removal, Delhi BJP secretary Harish Khurana said. He said it was an administrative decision to remove Kumar since his appointment was not in accordance with the rules.
The decision itself is a setback for the AAP, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader claimed. In its order to remove Kumar from his post, the Vigilance Directorate said “the competent authority has terminated the engagement of Bibhav Kumar, private secretary to Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, in terms of the provisions of Rule 5 of the Central Civil Services (Temporary Service) Rules, 1965, with immediate effect”.
Kumar was issued a show-cause notice in November last year by the directorate, which had observed that his engagement on the post of private secretary to the Delhi chief minister was “illegal”, citing a criminal case pending against him in Noida. In its order, the directorate said the charges against Kumar are “grave in nature, including the charge of assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty, for which the trial against Kumar is at the stage of evidence and therefore, Kumar is not clear from the vigilance angle”.
Further, it said rules for the engagement of Kumar “were not scrupulously followed, therefore, such engagement is illegal and void ab initio”. The Enforcement Directorate questioned Kumar on Monday, along with AAP MLA Durgesh Pathak, in connection with the money-laundering case linked to the excise policy. Kejriwal is in judicial custody till April 15 in connection with the case.
