Delhi LG suspends Delhi health minister Saurabh Bharadwaj's OSD
New Delhi, May 29: Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena Wednesday suspended Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj's Officer on Special Duty (OSD) R N Das with immediate effect for his alleged involvement in irregular and illegal registration of private nursing homes, officials said.
"The immediate cause for placing the officer under suspension is on account of reported misconduct with regard to unauthorized and illegal running of Jyoti Nursing Home, Shahadra beyond the valid registration period when he was also Medical Superintendent of Nursing Home Cell," an official said.
The BJP has also alleged Das's role in the registration process of a children's hospital in Vivek Vihar where six newborns were killed in a fire incident on Saturday night.
In the order issued on Wednesday, the directorate said, "The Hon'ble Lt. Governor, Delhi, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-rule (1) of Rule-10 of the CCS (CCA) Rules, 1965, hereby, places the said Dr. R.N. Das, Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Hon'ble Minister (Health), GNCTD, under suspension with immediate effect."
Earlier last month, Das was issued a show cause notice by the Directorate of Vigilance in connection with the alleged irregularities in the procurement of various items like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits, gloves, masks and Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) kits worth around Rs 60 crore during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.
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Right to vote under threat, must be made fundamental right: Cong's Jairam Ramesh
New Delhi (PTI): Congress leader Jairam Ramesh alleged on Thursday that the right to vote is under threat and the time has come when it should be made a fundamental right for citizens.
Speaking with reporters, Ramesh lashed out at Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, saying the Election Commission (EC) has never been as compromised as it has been under him.
"The rot started under his predecessor. This man is a player and not a neutral observer," the Congress leader said, slamming Kumar.
Kumar is completely compromised and has become a player in elections, he alleged.
"Home Minister Amit Shah had talked about three Ds -- detect, delete and deport. So we want to know how many non-Indian citizens have been detected, how many have been deleted and how many have been deported," Ramesh said, adding that the right to vote is now under threat.
On opposition parties submitting a fresh notice in the Rajya Sabha, seeking to move a motion for the CEC's removal, the Congress leader said they will continue to make efforts for Kumar's removal as he is "compromised".
Ramesh also batted for the right to vote to be recognised as a fundamental right.
"I believe that the time has come that the right to vote should be made a fundamental right. It is a statutory right, it is not a fundamental right. Fundamental rights are justiciable," he said.
The former Union minister said this was discussed in the Constituent Assembly, but it was eventually decided that it should be made part of the Constitution.
B R Ambedkar and Jagjivan Ram had warned that in the future, governments might try to disenfranchise voters, he added.
"Once and for all, include the right to vote as a fundamental right for Indian citizens," Ramesh asserted.
