Express News Service By

NEW DELHI: After flouting the appointment rules at the Delhi Commission for Women, the AAP government is mired in another similar controversy. The Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) has initiated a probe into alleged hiring of personal staff of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia against rules, acting on a complaint by an RTI activist.

Sisodia has appointed 63 people as peons and officers on special duty (OSD) in the last one year in his office, which is way more than the Prime Minister’s personal staff of 39. ACB Chief Mukesh Kumar Meena said, “We have received a complaint in this regard and will look into it.”

Delhi government spokesperson Nagendra Sharma, however, refused to comment on the matter: “I do not want react on it.”

The Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) is investigating the appointments of personal staff of Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, which is claimed to have flouted laid-down procedures. “No advertisements were issued, not even a written test was conducted while giving these people juicy positions in the Delhi secretariat,” alleged RTI activist Vivek Garg.

He said the basic pay of these hired Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) volunteers is even much more than that of Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Civil Service (DANICS) officers. Investigation was initiated on the basis of the complaint filed by Garg, who had also moved the CB I in this regard.

Notably, Sisodia, besides holding the charge of deputy chief minister, has held several cabinet portfolios, such as finance and planning, revenue, power, education, higher education, technical education, administrative reforms and IT.

As per the RTI, there are 10 peons, seven officers on special duty (OSD), seven clerks. Besides, many others have been given jobs without even creating any vacancies. While over 400 decisions of the Delhi government are under scanner of Justice Shunglu Committee constituted by Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung, the report of which is not expected to shower any positivity for Kejriwal, this probe by the ACB is another hitch for the present government.