In a sudden move, the Arvind Kejriwal Government has appointed a senior IPS officer Surendra Singh Yadav as the new chief of Delhi Government’s Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB). Yadav has replaced PC Hota. Currently, he is posted as Additional Commissioner of Police (Traffic).
Regarded as a no-nonsense and a tough as nails officer, Yadav is an IPS officer of 1997-batch of Arunachal, Goa, Mizoram and Union Territories (AGMUT). Yadav had previously served in Delhi Police as Additional DCP, Central district, DCP North-East district and DCP North district. Top sources said that lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung was reluctant to release Yadav from Delhi Traffic Police, but Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s hard-nosed negotiating style finally bore fruit.
Since inception of the AAP Government, Kejriwal was keen to bring former AIIMS CVO Sanjiv Chaturvedi to head ACB. Kejriwal had sent several requests to Centre and the Ministry of Environment & Forests (MoEF) to release Chaturvedi, but till date the MoEF has not released the officer. The Kejriwal Government was in a fix and wanted to appoint some handpicked officer to this crucial ACB post. Finally, it appointed Yadav to this post. The order has been issued to this effect.
In the AAP Government, ACB is the major bone of contention between AAP-led Delhi Government and Centre pertaining to curtailing of ACB powers, which can probe only Delhi Government’s employees. Despite defanging it somewhat, Kejriwal is making a last-ditch attempt to give ACB some teeth. On July 23, the Union Home Ministry had issued an order limiting the powers of the branch to only employees of the Delhi Government. The notification, which has been reviewed by Business Standard, says the 1993 order of the lieutenant Governor shall “apply to the officers and employees of the Government of National Capital”.
The explanation to the notification reads, “Central Government hereby declares that the notification number F1/21/92-Home (P) Estt 1750, dated the 8th November, 1993, issued by the lieutenant Governor of the National Capital Territory of Delhi shall be applicable to the officers and employees of that Government only.”