Govt gets over 50 nominations for CVC post

NEW DELHI: The government has received over 50 nominations from various ministries, departments and individuals for the post of Central Vigilance Commissioner following the ouster of P J Thomas.

Officials in the Department of Personnel and Training ( DoPT) said the names are being vetted and final three shortlisted candidates will be put before a three-member high level selection panel headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

The government has received nominations from former bureaucrats, politicians and judges in response to its advertisement for the post.

DoPT Secretary Alka Sirohi on April 5 this year rpt this year had written to heads of all ministries and departments of the Government of India, asking them to nominate a person of "outstanding merit and impeccable integrity" for the post.

Besides serving and retired All India Service officers, judges and other individuals can apply for the post of CVC provided they fulfil basic qualification and other skills set by the government in this regard.

The last date for receiving the nominations was April 25. Confirming the development on the appointment of CVC, DoPT spokesman Ravinder Singh said, "The process is on." He denied to comment further saying the matter was "highly confidential".

Senior officials privy to the development said the government was "keen" on filling up the post and it will be done likely by late next month.

The CVC is an independent body, which advises the government on vigilance-related matters and check corruption in various departments, among others. It is also probing several scams, including cases relating to Commonwealth Games.

The Supreme Court on March 3 had quashed the appointment of Thomas, a 1973 batch IAS officer of Kerala cadre, as Central Vigilance Commissioner after his name cropped up in corruption case relating to Palmolein imports in 1991, during his tenure as the food secretary, that allegedly caused a loss of over Rs two crore to the Kerala government.

Thomas' appointment had come under attack from all quarters after leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj had also expressed her dissent over his appointment. Swaraj and Home Minister P Chidambaram are members of the selection panel.