In an attempt to create a parallel anti-corruption branch, the AAP government has decided to upgrade the functioning of its vigilance wing by empowering its officials not to take up any other departmental work other than the vigilance related complaints in the national capital. The government has also ordered that about 40-odd surplus posts lying vacant in various departments for the past few years should be transferred to the Directorate of Vigilance.
It is reliably learnt that the government had once again not taken any prior approval from lieutenant-governor Najeeb Jung for effecting posting of the officers from different departments to the vigilance wing. A source said even if the reporting authority of any bureaucrat is to be changed, there has to be an approval of Raj Niwas.
The AAP government’s move to upgrade the functioning of the vigilance wing is being directly linked to its ongoing row with the L-G on the control over the ACB. Joint commissioner of police M.K. Meena, who had been appointed as the ACB chief by Raj Niwas despite chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s strong reservations, had gone on record saying that his reporting authority was the L-G himself.
The government has now made it clear that officers deputed in the vigilance wing should not be given any other work by any department so that they could fully concentrate on their vigilance monitoring. An order to this effect issued by secretary (vigilance) Sukesh Kumar Jain said that for the effective functioning of the vigilance wing in a department, the officer heading it should be able to function independently.
“Such officer should not be given work in addition to the vigilance work. The head of autonomous bodies under the government of NCT of Delhi will also not assign any other work to the chief vigilance officers, so that they may be able to function independently.”
The order said: “For independent functioning of the vigilance officers, surplus posts (about 40) of the level of ad-hoc Danics, Grade-I (DASS) and Grade-II (DASS) in various departments, which are lying vacant for the last 2-3 years, may be transferred by the services department to the directorate of vigilance for attachment with the vigilance officers. The services of the existing officers/officials in the respective vigilance units of the departments may also be utilised by the vigilance officers for the purpose.”
Mr Jain has also ordered that independent vigilance officers of the rank of the special secretary or additional secretary should be appointed by clubbing together four or five departments. The order said that the vigilance officers would be reporting to the secretary (vigilance) and not to their concerned HODs.
