Mukesh Sharma new chief of Jogindra Central Co-op Bank

Solan, March 16

The government yesterday appointed Mukesh Sharma of Ghatti village near here as the chairman of Jogindra Central Cooperative Bank amid a controversy over the oath-taking ceremony of four nominated directors held earlier in the day.

He is the first nominated director to be elevated to the post of the bank’s chairman. He replaced elected chairman Yogesh Bhartiya, who resigned at a meeting of the board of directors held on the bank premises yesterday.

The countdown for replacing Bhartiya began last week when Mukesh, who is said to be close to the CM and local MLA and Health and Family Welfare Minister DR Shandil, was nominated as the Director besides Hazura Singh from Nalagarh. The Registrar Cooperative Societies (RCS) also nominated two other first-time Directors (Jitender Thakur from Chail and Asgar Ali from Paonta Sahib) on March 9.

Objections were raised over Ali’s nomination. It was said he hadn’t been a resident of the area of operation of the society for the past six months, as required under the bank rules. Even Thakur’s nomination was objected to on the plea that the state should have notified it instead of the RCS.