Negi death case: Additional Chief Secretary declined to review final inquiry report
Additional Chief Secretary Onkar Sharma, who conducted a fact-finding inquiry into the death of Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd (HPPCL) Chief Engineer Vimal Negi, had rejected the request of the Power Department to review the final report to include rebuttal of three officers facing allegations.
It is through a letter dated May 14, 2025, that Secretary (Power) Rakesh Kanwar had sought inclusion of the statements of the three officers against whom allegations have been levelled by Negi’s family.
The 66-page fact-finding inquiry report was submitted by Sharma to the Department of Power on April 8, 2025, in a sealed cover, which has been submitted in court.
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“It would not be justifiable to delete, add or review the fact finding-inquiry report in the ends of law and justice. Therefore, the inquiry report is not altered or reviewed and in original along with the record is returned,” Sharma, ACS (Home and Revenue), wrote back to Kanwar through a letter dated May 15, 2025. Three officers Harikesh Meena, MD (HPPCL), Shivam Pratap, Director (Personnel), and Desh Raj, Director, had appeared and deposed before Sharma.
“The inquiry report has made some observations against delinquent officers, without giving them an opportunity of rebuttal, which is an essential requirement of the principle of natural justice,” wrote Kanwar. He also wrote that the inquiry report is a set of statements and has travelled beyond scope.
Sharma is heading the fact-finding inquiry to look into the allegations against the management of Himachal Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd, following the demise of Chief Engineer Vimal Negi, General Manager (Electrical).
“The officers, after having been satisfied, appended their respective signatures on their statements. The right of rebuttal to the delinquent officers is only available when they are facing a regular departmental inquiry,” he added.
In his reply, Sharma has also contested the remarks made by Secretary (Power) Rakesh Kanwar against him that he, in his capacity as Inquiry Officer, went beyond the scope of inquiry. He says that the remarks are “not at all tenable”.
“Your department has lost the sight of the fact that it was merely a fact-finding inquiry and not a regular inquiry,” he wrote, while rejecting the request for reviewing the inquiry report.
Defending his decision to not reconsider the request for recording fresh statements of the officers against whom the family of Negi had levelled allegations, Sharma said that their statements had been recorded as per their version. “The law is established that during the course of fact-finding inquiry, the suspect officer, against whom allegation has been levelled, is not required to be associated,” he wrote.
“In the present case, in order to meet the ends of justice, I had not only associated the aforesaid delinquent officers in the inquiry but also recorded their defence version in their statements by giving them full opportunity of putting forth their defence,” he wrote. He also pointed out that during the course of inquiry, the said delinquent officers had not raised any issue that the principle of natural justice had been given a clear go-by.
