As Fadnavis alleges no action taken despite COI report on IPS transfer racket
@the_news_21
Mumbai: More pressure is building on the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) as Leader of the Opposition, Devendra Fadnavis Tuesday said that he would meet Union Home Secretary and demand for a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged racket involving the transfer of IPS officers.
Addressing a press conference in Mumbai, Fadnavis said, former Commissioner of Intelligence, Rashmi Shukla had prepared a report after intercepting the call records of politicians and IPS officers. Fadnavis said, she had found the conversation to be explosive and had hence brought it to the notice of the Director-General of Police, Subodh Jaiswal.
The former Chief Minister said Jaiswal on his part wrote a letter to the then Additional Chief Secretary (Home), Sitaram Kunte. Fadnavis claimed that Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray was apprised about this alleged racket of politicians and IPS officers and the report prepared by Ms Shukla.
Jaiswal in his letter had said that the report by the Commissioner of Intelligence was serious as the alleged nexus between politicians and IPS officers in connection with transfer/posting would bring disrepute to the State Government. He had asked for a CID inquiry. However, Thackeray did not take any action against it and did not launch a CID probe. Not only that, Fadnavis claimed that he instead sent the report to the state home ministry.
The senior BJP leader claimed that when he was the Chief Minister in 2017, that time too, the Commissioner of Intelligence, Rashmi Shukla had intercepted the calls and that time seven to eight people were arrested. He said, even a charge sheet was filed against those persons who were allegedly part of the nexus.
Fadnavis informed that Rashmi Shukla was due for the promotion of Director General, but it was stalled by the state government and instead her junior officers were given advanced promotion. He further said since Ms Shukla’s service records were impeccable the government had to give her promotion. However, she was made Director-General of Civil Defence, even when there was no such post. Fadnavis alleged that the post was created without the state cabinet’s nod.
Fadnavis said, he has 6.3 GB of data which includes the call records and the transcripts, which he would hand over to the Union Home secretary as he is the custodian of IPS officers.
Taking a swipe at NCP president Sharad Pawar, Fadnavis said that he was given the wrong briefing on Home Minister Anil Deshmukh’s whereabouts.
He said Pawar claimed that Deshmukh was in-home quarantine from 15-21 February in Nagpur. But from the police manifest which mentions the movement of ministers, Deshmukh had come to the Sahyadri Guest House in South Mumbai on 17th February at 3 pm. Thereafter, on 24th February to his name was in the police manifest where it was mentioned that he travelled from his official residence in Mumbai to the state secretariat.
