3 secretariat staff suspended by UP CM after sting exposes corruption
Lucknow, Dec 28: Three secretariat staff attached to Uttar Pradesh ministers were suspended on charges of graft following a sting operation by a news channel, according to a state government release.
They were suspended on orders of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, who also directed officials to register a police case against them, the release said.
It said as per the chief minister's direction the matter will be probed by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) and it will submit its report within 10 days after taking statements of all parties in the case.
The SIT will be led by Additional Director General of Police, Lucknow Zone, Rajiv Krishna, the release issued on Thursday said.
Directives have also been issued to the secretariat administration for review of such matters so that such cases do not recur, it said.
According to reports in a section of the media, a sting operation was conducted by a TV channel purportedly showing three personal secretaries of ministers allegedly seeking bribe in return for favours such as transfers and issuing of contracts.
The chief minister had earlier issued clear instructions to adopt complete honesty in the government's functioning and clarified that the government had zero-tolerance policy towards corruption, the release said.
In the sting operation, Om Prakash Kashyap, personal secretary of Backward Welfare Minister Om Prakash Rajbhar is purportedly seen seeking Rs 40 lakh for a transfer.
Rajbhar, who is a minister from the Suheldev Bhartiya Samaj Party (SBSP), said he has removed his personal secretary and written a letter to the chief minister for stern action against him.
In the same sting operation, an aide of Minister of State for Mining Archana Pandey, is shown allegedly striking a deal with the channel's reporter for getting him mining contracts in about six districts.
Santosh Awasthi, personal secretary to the MoS Basic Education Sandeep Singh, is also seen in the sting operation allegedly working out a deal for a contract for books and seeking his own cut.
Singh is the grandson of former UP chief minister and current Rajasthan governor Kalyan Singh.
The sting operation also produced alleged recordings of a secretariat staff assuring the reporter, who posed as a contractor, that a school bag and uniform contract would be swung in his favour.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
