Why CM Yogi Adityanth, cautions his Ministers against “blindly trusting” their staff

*Paromita Das 

Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister, is still deliberating on his zero-tolerance approach to fighting corruption. The PWD department’s irregular transfers and decisions made in violation of the rules have once more drawn the ire of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, on Wednesday urged the state cabinet Ministers to stop blindly trusting the officers amid growing tensions between the state ministers and proposed transfers of government employees. He said, alluding to claims of fraud and corruption in the state government’s PWD department, “Do not blindly trust your staff.”

Yogi Adityanath urged his cabinet to base all decisions on merit and declared that corruption and irregularities would not be tolerated. He advised the ministers not to make hasty decisions.

The Public Works Department was the subject of numerous complaints to the government about transfer irregularities

Anil Kumar Pandey, an Officer on Special Duty (OSD) for Public Works Department (PWD) Minister Jitin Prasada, was transferred as a result of the government’s suspension of five other officers and transfer of Anil Kumar Pandey on July 18. The five officers, including the PWD director and Chief Engineer Manoj Gupta, reportedly received suspensions following the action against Pandey.

अपने स्टाफ पर आंख मूंद कर भरोसा न करें मंत्री: मुख्यमंत्री श्री @myogiadityanath जी महाराज pic.twitter.com/HwbAuA5BPS

— Yogi Adityanath Office (@myogioffice) July 20, 2022

Thirteen months after the politician took charge of the organization, after switching from the Congress to the BJP, the UP PWD department has been dogged by allegations of corruption in transfer assignments. An investigation revealed that Jitin Prasada chose OSD Anil Kumar Pandey, who was directly responsible for wrongdoings in department transfers.

Yogi Adityanath, the Chief Executive Officer, cautioned the state ministers not to blindly trust their officers in the cabinet meeting on Tuesday in light of this. He gave the ministers the order to monitor the officers in their department and their actions. Additionally, CM Yogi warned the officials, reiterating that corruption and illegal activity would not be tolerated in Uttar Pradesh.

Reports of irregularities and instances of corruption in the transfer of government employees have been made in the state of Uttar Pradesh. In response to an alleged error in government doctor transfer orders, more than 100 medical professionals from the state wrote to the Director General of Medical Health last week. The mistakes included the transfer of doctors who had passed away; the transfer of a couple in violations of the couple posting, and the transfer of a patient within a year of a previous transfer.

The government of Yogi Adityanath in Uttar Pradesh has been stern in combating the corruption and inefficiency that have plagued the state for years. The names of over 100 corrupt class I officers, including IAS, IPS, PCS, and PPS officers, whose names had appeared in corruption cases at any point during their service period were sought by the Chief Minister in 2018. In addition, the Yogi-led Uttar Pradesh government made the decision to fire seven PPS officers in 2019 over allegations of corruption.

In order to further the fight against corruption, the UP government warned more than 400 corrupt officials that they would face harsh punishment and decided to let about 200 employees retire early. The government had also filed a FIR against more than a dozen police officers earlier this year.

Two additional PWD department officers are charged with improper transfers within the department in the current case. When Jitin Prasada was a Union minister in the UPA administration, OSD Pandey worked for him and was sent on deputation to Lucknow. According to the most recent investigation, Jitin Prasada chose OSD Anil Kumar Pandey, who is directly responsible for wrongdoings in department transfers.

However, according to reports, OSD Pandey’s transfer has not pleased Minister Jitin Prasads. The Minister discussed the issue with CM Yogi Adityanath, and today he will likely meet with Home Minister Amit Shah.