Health Minister J.P. Nadda on Wednesday told the Delhi High Court that the allegation levelled in a PIL against him over dismantling the AIIMS vigilance administration is "absolutely false and frivolous".
The public interest litigation (PIL) has alleged Nadda actively participated in dismantling the newly set up vigilance administration at AIIMS and halted all inquiries initiated by anti-graft officer Sanjiv Chaturvedi.
Nadda also told a division bench of Chief Justice G. Rohini and Justice R.S. Endlaw that the PIL filed was "actuated by ulterior motive to gain political mileage" and "malign" the government's image.
"The allegation that certain sensitive corruption cases involving officials reportedly close to J.P. Nadda are already under review and that investigation in many cases has been slowed down, is absolutely false and frivolous," the minister said in an affidavit.
"The petition portrayed feigned public interest, is in fact actuated by ulterior motive, is filed for personal gains of certain individuals to gain political mileage and to malign the incumbent government," it added.
The minister's response came on a plea seeking a CBI inquiry into various cases of irregularities and corruption in the hospital raised by Chaturvedi.
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The PIL filed by NGO Centre for Public Interest Litigation (CPIL) through advocate Prashant Bhushan has asked the health minister to recuse himself from all cases and from acting as a disciplinary authority, alleging that he had "unfettered powers to influence the course of proceedings in all the corruption cases".
The plea has sought a revival of all cases in which action was initiated by Chaturvedi before he was removed by then union health minister Harsh Vardhan in August last year from his post as chief vigilance officer of the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS).
Bhushan has alleged that Nadda actively participated in dismantling the newly set up vigilance administration and halted all inquiries initiated by Chaturvedi by writing numerous letters to various central ministries from May 2013 to June 2014.
The minister, however, said the plea here was a "mere service dispute" by and on behalf of the Chaturvedi and is aimed at espousing the purported grievances of with respect to his service.
Nadda denied the allegation that Chaturvedi was removed from the post as he was conducting probe in several corruption cases related to various malpractices in the premier hospital.
Chaturvedi was removed as his appointment was illegal and done without any vigilance clearance. "All proceedings pending against officers of AIIMS shall be duly enquired into, investigated and taken to the logical conclusion in accordance with law," the minister added.
The plea said that in his two-year stint as anti-graft officer at AIIMS, Chaturvedi had successfully completed more than 150 investigations in which officials were charged and penalised.
He was conducting investigations in several other corruption cases when he was moved out on the orders of the health minister, it added.