Amid the escalating tensions between the state ministers and proposed transfers of the government officers, UP CM Yogi Adityanath on Wednesday advised the state cabinet ministers to stop blindly trusting the officers. “Do not blindly trust your staff”, he said hinting at the allegations of irregularities and corruption in the PWD department of the state government.
This is after the government on July 18 transferred Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Jitin Prasada’s Officer on Special Duty (OSD), Anil Kumar Pandey, and suspended five other officers over the charges of corruption. According to the reports, the five officers including the PWD head and Chief Engineer Manoj Gupta were suspended after the action was taken against Pandey.
Jitin Prasada’s UP PWD department has been beset by charges of corruption in transfer assignments 13 months after the politician took over the department after joining the BJP from the Congress. An investigation showed that OSD, Anil Kumar Pandey, directly accountable for wrongdoings in department transfers was selected by Jitin Prasada.
Considering this, CM Yogi Adityanath in the cabinet meeting on Tuesday advised the state ministers to not trust their officers blindly. He directed the ministers to keep a watch on their department officers and their activities. CM Yogi also issued a warning to the government officers and reiterated that corruption and irregular activities would not be entertained in Uttar Pradesh.
The state of Uttar Pradesh has seen reports of irregularities and incidents of corruption in the transfer of government officers. Last week, over 100 medical professionals from the state had written to the Director General of Medical Health over an alleged error in government doctor’s transfer orders. The errors included the transfer of deceased doctors, transfer in violation of couple posting, and transfer within one year of previous transfer.
Yogi Adityanath’s government in Uttar Pradesh has been strict against corruption and inefficiency that had struck the state for decades. In the year 2018, the Chief Minister sought records of over 100 tainted class I officers, including IAS, IPS, PCS, and PPS officers, whose names had figured in corruption cases at any point in time during their service period. Also, in 2019, the Yogi-led Uttar Pradesh government decided to sack seven Provincial Police Service (PPS) officers on charges of corruption.
Furthering the drive against corruption, the UP government had warned over 400 corrupt officials of severe punishment and decided to give early retirement to around 200 employees. Earlier in 2019, the government had also registered FIR against more than a dozen policemen.
In the current case, two other officers of the PWD department are also accused of impropriety in transfers within the department. OSD Pandey had served Jitin Prasada while he was a Union minister in the UPA government and was brought to Lucknow on deputation. The recent investigation revealed that OSD Anil Kumar Pandey, directly accountable for wrongdoings in department transfers was selected by Jitin Prasada.
However, reports mention that Minister Jitin Prasads is not satisfied with the transfer of OSD Pandey. The Minister met CM Yogi Adityanath on the matter and is expected to meet Home Minister Amit Shah today.