New Delhi: Two incidents – the suspension of a decorated IAS officer on bribery charges and the outburst of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator – have put Uttar Pradesh chief minister Adityanath’s self-projected image of having made the state “corruption-free” and a haven for investors under the scanner.
From claiming that Uttar Pradesh had become “brashtachar mukt (corruption free)” in 2021, Adityanath is now planning to launch a new campaign against corruption in the view of the high-profile bribery case from Lucknow. “This termite (corruption) needs to be eradicated,” Adityanath said, underlining that corruption was making the system hollow.
A pro-investment and corruption-free environment have been one of the biggest promises made by the Adityanath-led government to voters in Uttar Pradesh since 2017. And the unravelling of the bribery case involving a senior official in the state capital has put a big dent on that facade.
However, BJP’s MLA from Ghaziabad Nand Kishor Gurjar publicly alleged that the current government was the “most corrupt ever”. Irked after police used force to stop a ‘Kalash Yatra’ led by him and his supporters, Gurjar launched a tirade against his own government and its senior officials. He alleged that the chief secretary of the state Manoj Kumar Singh was the “most corrupt” official and that officials captured land in Ayodhya.
Gurjar, addressing a press conference on March 21, alleged that fake encounters and acts of cow slaughter were taking place in the state and that officials were misleading Adityanath. “There has not been so much corruption anywhere in akhand bharat as there has been in Uttar Pradesh,” said Gurjar. “But the media is showing that there is a Ram Rajya.”
Also read: A UP Professor’s Home and Library were Bulldozed, Now SC’s Words Against Govt Are a Glimmer of Hope
It’s possible that Gurjar, who is known to shoot off his mouth, might be settling his own personal scores and building an atmosphere for the next election in 2027. However, his comments have embarrassed the government.
“Under BJP’s rule, BJP members themselves are revealing secrets, how injustice and corruption have spread everywhere. Now, will they also change his report,” asked Samajwadi Party (SP) president Akhilesh Yadav on X, referring to Gurjar’s allegations.
On March 20, Adityanath suspended IAS officer Abhishek Prakash, who was the CEO of Invest UP, the investment promotion and facilitation agency of the state, after he was found prima facie guilty of allegedly seeking a bribe through a middleman for approving a proposal linked to a solar power plant project. A criminal case was also lodged against the alleged middleman Nikant Jain, who was also arrested by police.
Jain had allegedly demanded a commission of 5% from the representative of a private firm Sael Solar P6 Private Limited for approving the project. And when the company’s employee refused to pay the bribe, the project, initially approved, was sent back for re-evaluation without providing a proper reason.
The case against Abhishek Prakash
It is the corruption matter involving 2006-batch IAS officer Prakash that has really got tongues wagging in Lucknow.
The FIR was lodged against Jain after Biswajit Dutta, an employee of Sael, complained to chief secretary Singh. In his complaint, Dutta said that his company wanted to set up a unit to manufacture parts for solar plants. After submitting online and offline applications, Sael’s project was assessed by a committee and approved, said Dutta.
However, he claimed that a senior official asked him to get in touch with a private person Jain. The official allegedly mentioned that Jain would help Dutta expedite the process of getting the approval from the empowered committee and the cabinet. Dutta said he contacted Jain, who allegedly demanded that 5% of the total cost of the project be paid as kickback and also asked for an advance payment.
Dutta said that when he refused to pay the bribe, the project was sent back for re-evaluation. He said that he informed Jain that the owner of his company had already discussed the project with Adityanath himself but that Jain instead told him that no matter what he and his boss tried to do, they could only get the project approved through him. Jain was booked under Sections 7, 12 and 13 of The Prevention of Corruption Act and for extortion.
Prakash held the prestigious posting of district magistrate of Lucknow from October 2019 to June 2022, after which he, while still posted in the state capital, served as the secretary to the Uttar Pradesh Industrial Development Corporation Department and CEO of Invest UP till his suspension on March 20.
Uttar Pradesh government, after conducting an internal probe, found that while the evaluation committee had passed a recommendation on Sael’s proposal, in the note sheet issued in the final minutes, the project was sent back for re-evaluation. The government said that there was “no justification in the file” for making amendments to the recommendation presented by the evaluation committee.
This strengthened the apprehension that “malicious intent, vested interest and unfair financial gain” of Prakash “may also have been a factor in doing so,” the government said.
“Such an act will definitely create difficulty in achieving the basic objectives of the Uttar Pradesh Industrial Investment and Employment Promotion Policy 2022 and the morale of new industrial units coming to the state in the perspective of investment will be lowered and the image of the state will be affected,” the government added.
Also read: UP: ‘Love Jihad’ Conspiracy Takes on New Colour as Muslim Women Now Painted as the Villains
Prakash allegedly violated rule-3 of the All India Services (Conduct) Rules-1968. Prakash’s assets would also be investigated as further disciplinary proceedings were initiated against him.
On the same day, the solar plant corruption fiasco erupted in Lucknow, Adityanath, while addressing an official event in Gonda, promised that his government was planning to launch a big strike against corruption, which he said was like termites hollowing out the system. Addressing entrepreneurs and the youth, Adityanath said that if they encountered corruption anywhere they must simply write a complaint to him.
“If anyone asks money from you in exchange for getting your loans approved, don’t believe them. Go to the government portal. If anyone unnecessarily asks you for money, complain about them. I will get it probed and fix accountability,” said Adityanath.
Although he did not refer to the solar plant corruption case, he issued a warning to his officials and officers. “Note this, whoever will demand money from you in an unscrupulous manner, that person will be the last person from their family to appear in government service. After that person, nobody from their family will come to government service,” Adityanath said. “We will take such a big action that it will set an example.”
After Jain’s arrest, who is originally from Meerut, Uttar Pradesh police said they were probing the role of other persons and officials in the corruption case.
