Delhi government suspends Principal Secretary Rajendra Kumar

Rajendra Kumar

Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s Principal Secretary Rajendra Kumar was suspended Wednesday, by an order signed by the CM himself, said sources in the Delhi government. According to government rules, an IAS official who is detained in official custody for more than 48 hours is “deemed to have been suspended”.

Kumar was arrested Monday in connection with an alleged case of corruption, and sent to five-day CBI custody by a court Tuesday.

After Kumar’s arrest, the Delhi Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) is functioning with only three bureaucrats. One is S S Yadav, secretary to Chief Minister, who is also a VAT commissioner, and another is Dr Vasantha Kumar N, who is additional secretary to CM and is on a long study leave.

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Deputy Secretary Tarun Sharma, another senior CMO official, was arrested along with Kumar over charges of corruption.

There are two additional secretaries in the CMO — Geetika Sharma and Deepak Virmani. Sharma has been transferred to Andaman and Nicobar Islands but is yet to be relieved of her duties in the Delhi government.

The order issued by the CM stated, “… Rajendra Kumar is serving under the government of NCT Delhi as principal secretary to CM and was arrested by CBI consequent to registration of FIR… remand has been allowed to CBI for five days. The rules — All India Services (discipline and appeal) rules 1969 — a member of services who is detained in official custody, whether for a criminal charge or otherwise for a period longer than 48 hours shall be deemed to have been suspended by the government concerned under this rule.”

The order added, “Kumar is placed under suspension. Kumar will have to be in Delhi and cannot leave it without permission of deputy CM, Delhi.”