BMC corporators had written to the state government, complaining that files of around 1,000 officials had been intentionally misplaced, so that the probe against them could not be completed. Express photo by Nirmal Harindran BMC corporators had written to the state government, complaining that files of around 1,000 officials had been intentionally misplaced, so that the probe against them could not be completed. Express photo by Nirmal Harindran

Maharashtra government has written to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, directing it to probe 2,001 civic staff and officers accused of corruption. An official from the Urban Development department said investigations were pending against these 2,001 BMC employees, related to 261 different departments. He said that BMC corporators had written to the state government, complaining that files of around 1,000 officials had been intentionally misplaced, so that the investigation against them could not be completed. “However, when asked for an explanation, the BMC has conveyed to us that none of the files have been misplaced,” he added.

“The corporators demanded that the state government take cognisance of the delay in investigations and ask the BMC to finish them at the earliest,” the official said. On receiving the complaint, the state government had, on March 8, directed the BMC to complete pending inquiries at the earliest. Unsatisfied with the government’s directive, the opposition Congress claimed it was unlikely that the inquiry would bear any result.

“The entire country knows that the BMC is a centre of corruption which thrives on the nexus between the ruling BJP-Shiv Sena and corporation officials. This nexus cannot be broken till these parties are thrown out of power,” MPCC spokesperson Sachin Sawant said. He added it would not be surprising if the BMC, in future, changes its stand and says the files pertaining to the investigation against its officials have been misplaced.

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