Ayodhya GST Deputy Commissioner under probe over alleged fake disability certificate: Official
Mau (UP) (PTI): Prashant Kumar Singh, who resigned as GST Deputy Commissioner on Tuesday in protest against alleged "objectionable" remarks by Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand against Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, is under probe over the authenticity of his disability certificate, an official said here.
Mau Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Sanjay Gupta said on Wednesday that a complaint seeking re-examination of Singh's disability certificate was filed in 2021, and the investigation was being conducted at multiple levels, including the Health Department, the Office of the Divyangjan Ayog and higher administrative authorities.
After Prashant Kumar Singh announced his resignation in Ayodhya, where he has been posted, his brother Vishwajeet Singh alleged before the media that the GST officer had secured his government job using a fake disability certificate.
According to the CMO, the disability certificate in question was issued in 2009. A complaint seeking re-examination of the certificate was filed in 2021, and since then, the verification process has been underway.
“This matter has been in my knowledge since 2021 and the inquiry process has been continuing since then,” Gupta said.
He said that following the complaint, the officer was summoned twice before the divisional disability medical board for assessment of around 40 per cent disability, but he failed to appear on both occasions.
Gupta said that on December 19, the Health Department issued an official letter seeking directions from the Director General of Health Services in the matter.
A copy of the letter was also sent to the complainant, Vishwajeet Singh.
The entire case has been communicated to the office of the Divyangjan Ayog, Gupta said, adding that all required procedures at their level have been completed and further action will be taken after receiving instructions from higher authorities.
Responding to claims that the disability pertains to an eye-related condition considered rare even at the age of 50, the CMO said that only an expert medical board can give a final and authentic opinion on such issues.
"There is no pressure on me of any kind. The entire process is being carried out in a transparent manner and strictly as per rules,” Gupta said, adding that the matter is currently pending before the Divyangjan Commissioner, the Health Directorate and other higher institutions concerned.
Further action will be initiated once directions are received, he said
Singh had on Tuesday resigned in protest against Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand's alleged "objectionable" remarks against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, saying that he was deeply hurt by what he described as recent attempts to divide the country on the basis of caste and religion.
Singh said that he was stepping down in support of the government, the Constitution and the country's elected leadership.
"From the holy land of Prayagraj, Shankaracharya Avimukteshwaranand has made objectionable remarks against our state's elected leader, who is constitutionally holding the post," he said.
As a government servant bound by service rules, Singh said, he could not remain indifferent to such developments, he had said.
Jyotish Peeth Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand Saraswati had lashed out at Chief Minister Adityanath after police allegedly stopped him and his followers from going in a chariot for a holy dip in the Ganga during the Magh Mela in Prayagraj on the occasion of Mauni Amavasya on January 18.
A day later, the Magh Mela administration issued a notice to Avimukteshwaranand, asking how he was projecting himself as the Shankaracharya of Jyotish Peeth despite a Supreme Court order saying that no religious leader could be anointed as Shankaracharya of Jyotish Peeth until the disposal of an appeal.
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UDF will have huge win in Kerala, NDA won't open its account: Cong leader Satheesan
Kochi (PTI): Senior Congress leader V D Satheesan on Friday expressed confidence in a huge win by the UDF, claiming it will make a clean sweep in five districts, and brushed aside speculations that the NDA will open its account in Kerala.
Satheesan, speaking to reporters here a day after the conclusion of the Assembly polls, praised the performance of the UDF leaders and workers during the election, saying it was the best ever he has seen in the last 30 years.
He said that his claims of the UDF getting over 100 seats is not a mere statement, but based on the work the front has done during the last five years to bring back all those who had left it in 2005 and as a result, there was a huge wave in its favour in the state.
The leader of opposition in the state assembly, who contested from the Paravoor constituency, further said that the Congress-led front also had a major social backing from minorities and marginalised groups in the society.
Besides that, there was an anti-incumbency feeling among the people who were disappointed with the LDF rule, he claimed and said that the UDF provided them with a hope and an alternative which no other opposition had done in the past.
"All these factors will contribute to a huge win for the UDF and it would not be surprising if we make a clean sweep in Malappuram, Wayanad, Ernakulam, Idukki and Pathanamthitta districts. That is a total of 43 seats," he said.
According to him, the polling percentage increased because the UDF got people added to the electoral list.
He also brushed aside the LDF remarks about a woman or youth CM, saying that "they can make such statements now as they know they cannot win".
"Otherwise, why did they campaign with Pinarayi Vijayan as the main factor. Why did they say a third Pinarayi rule will come?" he asked.
He also claimed that the LDF's decision to spend government money on its political campaign, by putting up hoardings and carrying out social media programmes to sway voters, has also backfired as people realised that their taxes were being wasted like that.
Asked whether the NDA will open its account, especially in areas where the UDF claimed the BJP-led front had made a deal with the LDF, Satheesan replied in the negative.
He said that as of now he does not see any chance of the NDA opening its account in the state.
