Saturday, 28 October 2023 | PNS | DEHRADUN
The Bharatiya Janata Party has stated that it welcomes the Uttarakhand High Court’s decision in the Horticulture department case and that it is ready for any investigation. The BJP State president Mahendra Bhatt averred that the party works on the policy of zero tolerance for corruption. He said that the party welcomes all probes, whether conducted by the government or ordered by the court. Corruption should not be tolerated, he stressed.
On the subject of the Horticulture department scam Bhatt said, “The party believes that any type of scam or even the smallest scope for corruption in the State should not be tolerated. At present, investigation is being done in any case where there is even slight suspicion. We welcome the decision of the High Court and hope that the government will take legal advice following the court order and take a proper decision soon.”
The BJP State president claimed that the actions taken against corruption so far make it clear that the government under chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami is working in a transparent manner. The government has taken action against corruption officers of various departments while the Vigilance department is also taking action consistently. “On the CM’s directions, various officers were suspended in SIIDCUL in view of financial irregularities. Earlier, the CM had also removed the then Horticulture director from his post following financial irregularities. Whether it be IAS officer Ramvilas Yadav or the mafia which facilitates copying in competitive exams, the government has taken strict action against all such elements. Yadav was accused of disproportionate assets and sent to jail. Forest officer Kishan Chand who was accused of disproportionate assets and misusing his post also faced action. Action was also taken against the then Horticulture director HS Baweja, Ayurved University finance controller Amit Jain, Uttarakhand Transport Corporation deputy general manager (Finance) Bhupendra Kumar and various other officials. Fifty seven persons accused of facilitating malpractices in competitive exams were sent to jail while 24 main accused were also booked under the Gangster Act,” said Bhatt.
Referring to the Congress’ stance on this issue, he said that leaders of the Congress are themselves facing probes in various cases. Such cases used to be suppressed earlier and corruption received government protection but now the government is getting such matters investigated. The BJP has been in favour of transparent governance, he averred.
Regarding former CM and senior Congress leader Harish Rawat being summoned by the CBI, Bhatt said issuing such notices is part of the investigation process. He said that while Rawat is welcoming the CBI notice and talking of cooperating with the agency, his colleagues in the party are raising baseless questions regarding the timing.
