Chandigarh Administration for disciplinary action against ‘erring’ HCS officer

Dushyant Singh Pundir

Chandigarh, November 23

The UT Vigilance Department has decided to initiate disciplinary proceedings against a Haryana Civil Services (HCS) officer over pending complaints against him.

Acting on the complaints against 2013-batch HCS officer Virender Chaudhary, UT Adviser-cum-Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) Dharam Pal has asked Haryana to initiate disciplinary proceedings for a “major penalty”.

The allegations were levelled against the officer while he was posted as the Assistant Estate Officer (AEO) in the Chandigarh Administration around five years ago.

As per the allegations, while working as the AEO in 2017, the officer in a property matter deleted the condition of ‘life time interest only’, which was imposed by his predecessors at the time of allowing mutation on the basis of an unregistered will in connivance with certain individuals with vested interests.

According to another complaint, the officer allegedly got the additional charge of SDM (Central) for a few days, but within the brief period, he sealed a property, which was resumed recently, without following the due process, again to further vested interests.

Considering the officer was on deputation to the UT Administration and had already been repatriated, the CVO has sent the recommendation to initiate disciplinary proceedings against the officer to the Haryana Government.

Refuting the allegations, Chaudhary, currently posted as Secretary, Haryana Agriculture Marketing Board, said the property was transferred from a grandmother to grandchildren. In the second case, the resumed property was sealed for violations of the building byelaws and it was a routine matter, he claimed, adding later the building was unsealed on the directions of the Punjab and Haryana High Court.

His name had also appeared in a corruption case when the CBI had arrested SDM Shilpi Pattar, another HCS officer posted in Chandigarh on deputation, her husband Dheeraj Dutt and middleman GS Brar in 2017. However, Chaudhary was later exonerated in the case. After the incident, Chaudhary was repatriated to the parent state in 2017.

Charges during 2017 posting as AEO

• Action comes on allegations levelled against 2013-batch HCS officer Virender Chaudhary during his posting in the UT as the Assistant Estate Officer in 2017
• He “deleted” ‘life time interest only’ condition in a property matter imposed by predecessors while allowing mutation on the basis of unregistered will
• Also, holding additional charge of SDM (Central) for a few days, he allegedly sealed a property resumed recently without following due process

UT’s Allegations baseless

These are baseless allegations. Property was transferred from grandmother to grandchildren. Also, resumed property was sealed for byelaws violations and it was a routine matter. It was later unsealed on High Court orders. — Virender Chaudhary, Secretary, Haryana Agri Marketing Board