BJP demands probe into posting of officers in Delhi Trade and Taxes dept

BJP MLAs Tuesday demanded a high-level probe into the posting of officers in the Delhi government's Trade and Taxes department during the period when the services department was under the AAP dispensation.

The BJP leaders submitted a memorandum in this regard to Delhi Lieutenant Governor (L-G) Anil Baijal at the Raj Niwas.

Leader of Opposition in the Delhi assembly Vijender Gupta along with BJP legislators OP Sharma, MS Sirsa and Jagdish Pradhan met the L-G.

They alleged that a "large number" of "corrupt" officers were given posting in the sensitive Trade and Taxes Department during the 18-month period, from February 14, 2015, to August 4, 2016, when the services department was under the Arvind Kejriwal-led government.

Eighteen "corrupt" senior officers of the government's "liking" were posted to the department, they alleged in their memorandum.

Of these, nine officers were posted by Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and nine officers, by the then Secretary, Services, Rajender Kumar, at the behest of Chief Minister Kejriwal, they claimed.

Gupta said the Kejriwal government had filed a petition in the Delhi High Court.

The court had then passed an order on August 4, 2016, that the L-G was the competent authority in the matter of services, he said.

There is a need to screen all postings of officers made between February 14, 2015 and August 4, 2016, to bring out how many more such vested postings and transfers were made by Kejriwal government, Gupta said.