223 APPOINTMENTS FOR 40 POSTS: KNOW WHY DCW EMPLOYEES LOST THEIR JOBS IMMEDIATELY
All is not good within the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). With its topmost leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal still in Tihar, AAP has received yet another blow after Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena on Thursday removed 223 contractual employees from the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW), calling their appointment "illegal."
These appointments were made by the former DCW, which comes under the umbrella of the Delhi Government, chief Swati Maliwal, who is now an AAP MP. The LG claimed that Maliwal appointed the staffers without his permission and hence violated the rules.
A notice by the Additional Director of the Women and Child Development department read, "The approval of government is hereby conveyed to DCW to discontinue service of all contractual staff with immediate effect who have been appointed by the DCW at any point in time, by going beyond its delegated powers and without following various procedures laid down and in violation of DCW Act/rules/regulations/guidelines issued by Govt. of NCT of Delhi.”
DCW recently underwent a personnel change with Maliwal formally entering politics after AAP nominated her as an MP of Rajya Sabha. The post of DCW chief is currently vacant.
What's the case?
The allegations against Maliwal said that under her chairmanship, DCW hired 223 employees for the sanctioned strength of 40 posts.
Also, all these employments were made on contract, which according to the rules, cannot be done as the commission does not possess such authority.
The order also claims that the appointments were made without an evaluation of essential posts.
The order was issued after a probe was conducted based on a plea. The investigation reveals that these appointments were not made as per the laid down rules.
"Further, the enhancement of the remuneration and allowances to the staff of DCW was without adequate justification and in violation of the laid down procedures and guidelines," the notice said.
Maliwal strikes back
Calling the notice to DCW a "Tughlaqi order", Maliwal on X wrote, "LG sahab has issued a Tughlaqi order to remove all the contract staff of DCW. Today, the Women's Commission has a total staff of 90 out of which only 8 people have been provided by the government, the rest are on 3-month contracts."
"If all the contract staff is removed, the Women's Commission will be locked. Why are these people doing this? This institution has been built with blood and sweat. Instead of giving it staff and protection, you are destroying it from its roots?" Maliwal added.
Another spot on Maliwal's track record?
This is not the first time former DCW chairperson Maliwal had a trouble with the law.
Earlier, it was alleged that she had abused her power to appoint acquaintances between 2015 and 2016.
However, in a major relief, the Delhi High Court last year stayed the proceedings against her till the next date of hearing.
Maliwal was charged under the Prevention of Corruption (POC) Act, which she later denied.
The case was filed on the complaint of BJP leader Barkha Shukla Singh, a former DCW chief who was also attached to the Anti-corruption Branch in 2016. After an initial inquiry, an FIR was registered in the matter.
With inputs from agencies