In what is becoming a stand-off between the country’s premier medical hospital, All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), and the Union Health Ministry, politicians across party lines have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan seeking revocation of the order passed by the Ministry to remove Sanjiv Chaturvedi from the post of AIIMS Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) recently.
Batting for the whistleblower, Rajya Sabha member and Janata Dal president Sharad Yadav wrote to the Prime Minister seeking his intervention in the matter. In his letter, he noted that he personally knew Mr. Chaturvedi, who fought a long battle against corruption in Haryana. “Even the President had to intervene many times to revoke the illegal orders of the State Government against him,’’ he said.
The senior leader further said an institute like AIIMS “which has been in news for one reason or the other due to some corrupt and mischievous elements needs a person like Mr. Chaturvedi.’’ Mr. Yadav sought that the official be immediately re-instated as the CVO AIIMS till his tenure gets over.
Putting his weight behind the AIIMS official, Lok Sabha member Udit Raj wrote to Dr. Vardhan stating that the appointment of Mr. Chaturvedi as the Institute’s CVO is as per AIIMS rules and was done taking specific approvals of the standing finance committee, governing and institute body.
Stating that in his two-year tenure, Mr. Chaturvedi has taken action “against some of the most corrupt and powerful elements of AIIMS’’ Dr. Raj said: “The Health Ministry should withdraw the orders of removal of the officer and allow him to complete his mandated tenure of four years.’’
Meanwhile, the Health Ministry has justified its action stating Mr. Chaturvedi was ‘not eligible’ for the post. Dr. Vardhan had said: “Mr. Chaturvedi is not at all eligible for the post that he was holding at AIIMS.”
