A day after Divisional Commissioner Ashwani Kumar defended the Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar in an alleged corruption case, Delhi Vigilance Minister Atishi submitted a nearly 670 page preliminary report to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal regarding the Bamnoli land acquisition matter. She has also recommended that Chief Secretary along with Divisional Commissioner Ashwani Kumar be removed.

In her report, Atishi alleged the involvement of the Chief Secretary in enhancing the compensation for a piece of land in Bamnoli village, acquired by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for the Dwarka Expressway, in order to provide illicit profits to a company linked to his son, Karan Chauhan.The complaint alleged that the chief secretary's son was employed by a relative of a man who was awarded enhanced compensation for his land acquired for a road project.

"Atishi has submitted a 670-page report on the matter to Kejriwal. The report states that an undue gain of Rs 850 crore was earned in the matter. The land was bought near the Dwarka expressway at Rs 75 lakh only in 2015," sources said. Kejriwal had asked Atishi to conduct an inquiry into the complaint.

According to sources, the report also unveils a conspiracy by senior officers of Directorate of Vigilance (DoV), including Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar, to undervalue the scale of the scam as Rs 312 crore when the actual compensation award would have resulted in an illicit gain of Rs 850 crore to the beneficiaries.

Atishi stated in her report that it was obvious that Naresh Kumar's son had business connections with the landowners who were benefiting. The events since Naresh Kumar became Chief Secretary suggest that he might have used his power to increase compensation for the beneficiaries linked to his son's business. The report also alleges that Divisional Commissioner Ashwani Kumar repeatedly refused to provide files on this matter, which appeared suspicious and raised questions about his complicity.

In her report, Atishi urged that files related to this matter be seized from them, to prevent any "tampering or destruction of evidence". The Delhi minister also recommended disciplinary proceedings against Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar and Divisional Commissioner Ashwani Kumar.

The original award of the 19-acre land at Bamnoli, being acquired by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), was raised from Rs 41 crore to Rs 353 crore in May this year by the then district magistrate (South West) Hemant Kumar. Hemant Kumar was later suspended by the Ministry of Home Affairs in connection with the matter.

In a press conference on Monday, Delhi government Divisional Commissioner Ashwani Kumar said the allegations levelled against Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar are baseless and part of "dirty politics". The divisional commissioner claimed the allegations being levelled against the chief secretary are aimed at his character assassination as he is actively taking action in corruption cases. Justifying holding a press conference, Ashwani Kumar said a lot of "rumours and lies" are being spread to tarnish the image of the chief secretary.

There should be an inquiry into the whole matter, he said, adding that the allegations against the chief secretary are baseless and aimed at his character assassination. He also said the matter came to light in May and action was taken against the then district magistrate Hemant Kumar.