In an important development, the Delhi High Court has given three months’ time to the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) to take a final decision on a complaint against retired Telangana cadre IAS officer Rajat Kumar (IAS:1991:TG). The complaint filed by one Gavinolla Srinivas leveled serious allegations of corruption against Kumar.
The complainant had earlier lodged a complaint with the DoPT on January 28, 2022, accusing the senior bureaucrat of engaging in corrupt practices, including allegedly accepting benefits from a private infrastructure company involved in major irrigation projects in Telangana.
The HC issued these orders while disposing of a writ petition in which the petitioner alleged that the company had reportedly borne expenses incurred during Kumar’s daughter’s marriage function and that the private infrastructure company had been awarded contract works for mega irrigation projects in lieu.
The petitioner alleged that the DoPT, instead of taking an action, forwarded the complaint to the state Chief Secretary, which he says was insufficient and contrary to legal obligations, especially in light of the Supreme Court’s ruling in ‘Vineet Narain vs. Union of India,’ which emphasised timely and independent decision-making in corruption matters involving public officials.
The High Court held that merely forwarding the complaint to the state government did not absolve the DoPT of its responsibility and that it should have acted even if a report from the state was pending.
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