Honest government officials taking a stand against corruption are being harassed and persecuted by various public sector units, an investigation by dna has revealed.
In fact, managements of several government organisations often file false chargesheets against the whistleblowers. Many are transferred or pension and retirement benefits — such as gratuity — are denied to them.
Meanwhile, the central vigilance commission (CVC), which is supposed to protect whistleblowers, is watching helplessly.
Take the case of AK Jain, chief engineer at Damodar Valley Corporation (DVC), who was handed a chargesheet on January 26, 2013, just five days before his retirement. Jain was charged with tarnishing the reputation of the management by writing letters criticising various management decisions. Documents procured under the Right To Information Act revealed that the chargesheet was signed by secretary, DVC — a post that has been abolished by the ministry of power.
Jain’s ‘fault’ was pointing out irregularities in contracts and saving crores of public money.
He was also instrumental in exposing the Commonwealth Games (CWG) power scam when he highlighted that DVC was starting six new power projects during the 2010 CWG.
Jain said the projects were unnecessary and DVC was in no position — financially or legally — to take the decision. The fate of RK Tanwar, who retired as general manager of Minerals and Metals Trading Corporation Ltd (MMTC) last year, was no different. Tanwar was chargesheeted in September 2012, one month before his retirement.
Tanwar’s ill-treatment in the PSU started in 1994 after he refused to comply with his senior’s decision to release gold on loan to defaulting companies. “The management downgraded my annual confidential report. In 1996, my juniors were promoted, but I was denied a promotion. Since I kept highlighting irregularities, the management issued me a chargesheet,” said Tanwar.
In 2011, the management of the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development (NABARD) gave chargesheets to four officers in Gujarat for not sanctioning subsidy to Shree Shubham Logistics Limited (SSLL) under the Grameen Bhandaran Yojana. The officers were only doing their duty since SSLL did not fulfill the criteria to receive a subsidy.
According to sources in the bank, all of them were replaced by a set of subservient officers, who were unofficially asked to release subsidy to SSLL. They complied, citing the example of Rajasthan, where a similar subsidy had been released.
However, the move was questioned by the Directorate of Marketing and Inspection (DMI) in October 2011, and the subsidy was recalled in Rajasthan, documents available with dna show. “If the DMI has asked SSLL to return the subsidy in Rajasthan, why are honest officers being punished?” asked Dr KG Karmakar, former managing director of NABARD.
In all these cases, the gratuity of the persecuted officials was illegally denied to them after their retirement. A Supreme Court judgment in 2006 had stated that gratuity can be held back only if the person is terminated.
When contacted, P Mohanaiah, chief general manager, corporate communications department, NABARD, said the bank initiated disciplinary proceedings against the four officers for misconduct due to non-adherence to office procedures. Officials from other PSUs did not respond to dna’s questions.
The whistleblower bill, which is aimed at protecting honest officials, is likely to be tabled in the upcoming parliament session. Till then, honestly seems to do more harm than good.
Gratutiy denied
The gratuity of the persecuted officials was illegally denied to them after their retirement. A Supreme Court judgment in 2006 had stated that gratuity can be held back only if the person is terminated.
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