Terming it another scam in the AAP led Arvind Kejriwal government, the Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly Ramvir Singh Bidhuri on Thursday alleged that an illegal panel of some Ayurveda institutions continued to work for a year and Rs 50 crore was looted from the government exchequer in connivance with the officials. The BJP leader linked this scam with the former Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia and former Health Minister Dr. Satyendar Jain. Both Sisodia and Jain are currently in Jail. In a letter to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, the BJP leader has requested to order an inquiry into this entire scam to find out how the government exchequer was looted in the name of Ayurveda in Delhi and even after scrapping the panels by the central government.
According to Bidhuri, the Central Government had started a pilot project in April 2021 to provide Ayurveda medicines to the beneficiaries of CGHS. For this, a panel of 23 Ayurveda institutions was formed. It was clearly stated that this panel is being made only on a trial basis for one year. The Director General of Health Services (DGEHS) Government of Delhi also recognized this panel as an AYUSH Health Care Institution for OPD and IPD. It was also stated by the Director that since these institutions have been recognized in the CGHS of the Central Government, therefore only those institutions which are in the CGHS panel have been kept in this panel.
Bidhuri said that since the Central Government had made this panel only for one year, then by a notification on March 31, 2022, this panel was scrapped, and it was not renewed.
“The strategy of this entire rigging was conceptualized by Dr. Neeraj Kumar, Senior Medical Officer, who is very close to former Health Ministers Dr. Satyendar Jain and Manish Sisodia. This panel continued to be recognized for one year? During this, how many crores of rupees were paid by the government to these institutions? What was the share of Aam Aadmi Party leaders in this payment and who all are involved in this whole scam?,” Bidhuri said.
“The surprising thing is that even after the panel was abolished by the Centre, the DGEHS of the Delhi Government did not abolish this panel and continued to give benefits to these 23 Ayurveda institutions and their bills of crores continued to pass.
“When some other Ayurveda institutions also applied during this time, they were told that since they are not on the panel of CGHS, they cannot be given this benefit, but no one has the answer that when the panel of CGHS was over by 31 March 2022, then how did the DGEHS of Delhi Government keep this panel restored. No office order was even issued for this,” he said.
He said that when the secrets of this rigging of the Health Department of the Delhi Government started to open, then suddenly an order was issued on March 10, 2023, and it was said that this panel is being abolished from March 13.