New Delhi : Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has sent to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena the vigilance minister’s report alleging “prima facie complicity” of Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar in the Bamnoli land acquisition matter, government sources said on Wednesday.
The report, which was submitted to Kejriwal by Vigilance Minister Atishi on Tuesday, has recommended Kumar’s removal from the post for alleged corruption in acquisition of 19 acre of land in South West Delhi’s Bamnoli village.
The chief minister has instructed the vigilance minister to send the report to the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate as well, sources said.
The compensation for land acquisition was raised from Rs 41 crore to Rs 353 crore but the report has claimed that the “scale of undue benefits” in the deal was over Rs 897 crore.
Chief Secretary Kumar has denied any wrongdoing in the matter and termed the allegations against him as “mudslinging” by people with vested interests against whom vigilance action was taken in corruption cases.
The vigilance minister’s report was an outcome of an inquiry into a complaint that alleged that the chief secretary’s son was employed by a person who was relative of benefited landowners in Bamnoli.
“The original award of the 19-acre land at Bamnoli, being acquired by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), was raised from ₹41 crore to ₹353 crore in May this year by the then district magistrate (South West) Hemant Kumar.
Hemant Kumar was later suspended by the Ministry of Home Affairs in connection with the matter.
In a press conference on Monday, Delhi government Divisional Commissioner Ashwani Kumar said the allegations levelled against Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar are baseless and part of “dirty politics”.
