Bill (left) Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena (left) sent to the government
The Sukhu government of Himachal Pradesh is not able to control its officials. Sometimes samosas brought to the Chief Minister are distributed among the security personnel and sometimes the Chief Secretary Officers give a party to the government. The latest case is of Himachal Pradesh Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena, who has given a bill of Rs 1.22 lakh of his party to the government. Prabodh Saxena was to retire on 31 March. In such a situation, he gave a party to all the officers on 14 March.
The Himachal government extended the date of his retirement by expanding six months of service to Prabodh. In such a situation, Prabodh also handed over the party’s bill to the government. According to the news of the Times of India, Prabodh organized a lunch party for IAS officials and their family members on Holi (March 14) at Hotel Holiday Home, run through the state government in Shimla. Now a bill of Rs 1.22 lakh has been sent to the Secretary of the General Administration Department for payment.
What did the officer say?
The bill included 77 meals at the rate of Rs 1,000 per person, Rs 585 per meal for 22 drivers, Rs 11,800 taxi fare and Rs 22,350 tax and other fees for their families. Secretary of General Administration Department Rajesh Sharma said that the bill should be filled according to the instructions of the final authority. No government official has publicly made a statement on this matter.
Bureaucrats have been misusing money
This is not the first case in the state that the bureaucrats are accused of misusing the treasury of the Himachal government, which is struggling with lack of money. Earlier, former Chief Secretary and former Real Estate Regulatory Authority (RERA) was accused of gifting apple boxes to various serving and retired officers of other states including Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan and Haryana. After retiring from the post of Chief Secretary, Baldi, a native of Rajasthan, served as the chairman of RERA from January 2020 to December 2024. Former Deputy Advocate General Vinay Sharma had filed a complaint with the State Vigilance and Anti -Corruption Bureau and demanded to register an FIR in the case.
Apple boxes bought for Rs 44,100
Vinay Sharma had said that according to the information received under the RTI Act, 49 apple boxes were purchased for Rs 44,100 from Himachal Pradesh Horticulture Produce Marketing and Processing Corporation (HPMC) using RERA Fund and gifted to various officers by Baldi alone in 2022. Later, the city and village planning minister Rajesh Dharmani had said that his department has ordered the records and a proper investigation will be done. However, till date, no official information has been given about the result of the investigation by the state vigilance and the Anti -Corruption Bureau nor the City and Village Planning Department.
BJP demanded investigation
Former minister and BJP MLA Bikram Thakur on Thursday expressed serious concern over the alleged misuse of government money for the Holi party of Chief Secretary Prabodh Saxena and described the incident as a “gross violation of democratic values, moral standards and administrative etiquette”. Himachal Pradesh allegedly has a debt of Rs 1 lakh crore, Thakur criticized the government and bureaucracy, saying that he is “indifferent to the suffering of common people”. He demanded a fair investigation and disciplinary action against those responsible. He said, “This is not only a lapse in financial discipline but also a violation of the Central Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1964, under which government officials are expected to loyalty, honesty and fairness.
There was a ruckus on CM’s samosas
On October 21 last year, Chief Minister Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu went to the CID headquarters to inaugurate the cyber wing station. Cakes and samosas brought for CM were distributed to his staff here. It was investigated by CID. Investigation revealed that only SI knew that these compartments were especially for CM Sukhu. After this, notice was also issued to five policemen.
Latest india news
