Health min gives PMO half story on AIIMS anti-graft official's transfer- Business Standard
The report hid several key sets of facts. It did not inform the PMO the action to remove Chaturvedi had been triggered by Vardhan on the repeated requests of a Bharatiya Janata Party MP from Himachal Pradesh, J P Nadda. It did not utter a word about Nadda's requests that not only should Chaturvedi be removed from the post but also that he be repatriated mid-tenure to his parent cadre, Haryana, and all investigations into corruption cases at AIIMS be put on hold.
The health ministry also did not inform the PMO that the ministry had, only a few months ago, closed the issue raised by repeated letters of Nadda with the health secretary recording that Chaturvedi's appointment was legally and technically sound and that the matter should not be raised again. In fact, at that point, Chaturvedi's role in exposing corruption in AIIMS had been termed "instrumental". The report to the PMO sent by the same health secretary, Lov Verma, is silent on these facts.
The internal report of the health ministry may have remained quiet on these facts, but they later tumbled out as media reports, including those by Business Standard, revealed the demands Nadda had made to Vardhan. These reports also showed how Vardhan acted on Nadda's request and the ministry took a U-turn to remove Chaturvedi. As each set of new reports came out, the minister as well as the ministry preferred not to answer specific queries but several times shifted their stance to justify their decision. At last count, Vardhan had claimed the ministry had "immutable" powers to transfer officials any time during their tenure. more