Rules will be followed in Durga Shakti's case: PM

Rules will be followed in the case of suspended Uttar Pradesh IAS officer Durga Shakti Nagpal, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said Monday.

"There are rules laid down. They will be followed. We are in touch with the state government to get details of the case," he said in response to a question on the government's stand.

The suspension of Nagpal, a 28-year-old 2009 batch officer of the Indian Administrative Service by the Uttar Pradesh government July 29, has led to a public outcry. She had taken on illegal sand miners in Noida.

In Lucknow, Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said: "If an officer makes a mistake, he or she is punished. That is how a government works."

The Uttar Pradesh government Sunday served a chargesheet on Nagpal.

The government accused Nagpal of jeopardising communal harmony by breaking down a wall of a mosque. She has denied the charge.

The chargesheet came a day after Congress president Sonia Gandhi asked Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to ensure that nothing unfair was done to the official.