Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has sent Vigilance Minister Atishi's report accusing Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar of using his position to enable a "lucrative collaboration" between a company in which his son is a partner and the ILBS to LG VK Saxena, sources said on Saturday (November 18). Kejriwal received the report by Atishi on Thursday, which recommended Kumar's suspension and a CBI investigation in the matter. Sources close to the chief secretary denied the allegations claiming that his son is not a signatory of any MoU between the company and the ILBS.
“He is not at all connected with the company in question as a shareholder or director or partner or employee,” sources claimed.
ILBS denies allegations
The Institute of Liver and Biliary Sciences (ILBS), denied the allegations as "totally baseless and without merit”.
"ILBS confirms that it did not issue any purchase order or made any payment to any Al software developer or company," the ILBS statement said.
What were the allegations?
The Vigilance Minister alleged in the report that an MoU was signed between ILBS and the company of Chief Secretary's son on January 24, 2023, that provided "a huge scope for profiteering to the company by providing it with joint intellectual property rights for any intellectual property developed through the project and 50 per cent share of profits by both parties for any future commercialisation of work."
"Prima facie it appears that Naresh Kumar has acted in violation of All India Services Conduct Rules and has used his position to enable a lucrative collaboration for his son's company at a loss to the public exchequer," the report alleged.
Termination of the MoU was also recommended in the report.
(With PTI inputs)
