Uttarakhand chief secretary's probe into disaster relief scam is an eyewash, says BJP

DEHRADUN: Terming the enquiry by a state government-appointed panel into the alleged disaster relief scam as an "eyewash", opposition BJP in Uttarakhand today alleged that the probe was a ploy to shield officials and reiterated its demand for a CBI probe into the matter.

"The probe by the Chief Secretary was hardly a probe. It was just a ploy to shield government officials. We never had faith in such a probe. We also do not have faith in the report submitted by the chief secretary which gives a clean chit to officials in the scam," said state BJP president Tirath Singh Rawat.

Uttarakhand Chief Secretary N Ravishankar had on Friday summoned a press conference and announced there were no irregularities in the use of funds meant for disaster victims and submitted his report to Governor K K Paul on Sunday.

Tirath also accused the Chief Secretary of preparing the report under pressure by the state government.

"The chief secretary is retiring this month and we are sure he has been assured of something post-retirement in return for a favourable report," the BJP leader claimed.

Reiterating the party's demand for a CBI probe into the "scam", Tirath said BJP will not give up until a CBI probe was recommended into the alleged irregularities.

Avoiding a CBI probe in itself is an indication of a huge scam in the use of disaster relief funds, he said adding that the Harish Rawat-government would not have shied away from an investigation into it by the apex policing agency if it were confident about its officials being clean.

"When constitutional authorities like the information commissioner and the CAG suspect a scam in spending of relief funds, what is stopping the state government from recommending a CBI probe into it?" he asked.

He also accused the Congress-led state government of lowering the dignity of the Governor's office as the chief secretary first made public the gist of his probe report public and then submitted it to the Governor.

The state government had ordered a probe into the alleged irregularities by the chief Secretary just a day after the state information commissioner expressed his apprehensions about a huge scam in spending of relief funds in Uttarakhand in the wake of the 2013 Kedarnath deluge.