Vigilance Minister Atishi on Wednesday submitted a supplementary report to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in connection with the alleged irregularities in Bamnoli land deal, claiming that Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar and Divisional Commissioner Ashwani Kumar had “no intent” to act against an officer allegedly involved in the corruption.
There was no immediate response from the Chief Secretary. However, the Divisional Commissioner termed the allegations “a bundle of lies”.
The case pertains to the acquisition of a 19-acre land parcel acquired in south-west Delhi’s Bamnoli village by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for the Dwarka Expressway project. The land deal allegedly led to undue benefits to one of the landowners who is said to be linked to the business associate of the Chief Secretary’s son Karan Chauhan.
Ms. Atishi submitted the supplementary report to the Chief Minister after Lieutenant-Governor V.K. Saxena refused to consider the Minister’s preliminary report, saying it was based on assumptions. The Minister requested him to reconsider his previous position. The preliminary report said there was a “clear nexus” among the Chief Secretary, his son, and the landowner, who got “windfall gains” to the tune of hundreds of crores as the price of the land parcel was increased from around ₹41 crore to ₹897.1 crore.
“The preliminary report put up to the Chief Minister and presented to the L-G prima facie indicates that the Chief Secretary and the Divisional Commissioner were complicit in the egregious lapses, and their role needs to be thoroughly investigated,” the Minister said in the fresh report.
Ms. Atishi had last week written to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) requesting a probe into the land deal.
Earlier, both the officers had rejected the charges, with the Divisional Commissioner accusing Ms. Atishi of “colluding with wrongdoers”. The Chief Secretary had called the action against him “vendetta”, saying it was he who had recommended action against the officer who allegedly approved the land deal.
‘L-G ignored findings’
“The preliminary report furnishes concrete inputs that could guide the CBI and other investigative agencies in ensuring a holistic assessment of the circumstances to ensure that corruption is weeded out at its root,” the supplementary report said.
It said the L-G has made a blanket statement that there is no evidence against the Chief Secretary in the earlier report. “The L-G’s observation is refuted by the significant discoveries regarding connections between the Chief Secretary and the landowners in the report,” she said. She said it is in public interest that the CBI and the ED investigate not just the action of the then DM but also that of the Chief Secretary, Divisional Commissioner, the Chief Secretary’s son and his business associates.
