Chief minister Arjun Munda has finally removed state chief secretary Ashok Kumar Singh for his alleged involvement in a corruption case that was filed on August 20, 2002, by Bihar vigilance bureau. He has been replaced by development commissioner Sushil Kumar Chaudhary.
Singh has been shifted to Sri Krishna Institute of Public Administration (SKIPA) as director-general. Both Singh and Chaudhary are 1977-batch IAS officers.
Continuation of Singh as chief secretary had created hue and cry and the Opposition had demanded his removal from the post. Opposition has alleged that the state government was ignoring the letter which it received on January 19, 2009 from the Centre, asking for state’s opinion about granting sanction to prosecute Singh under Section-19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
During a chaotic situation in the ongoing budget session of the state assembly, chief minister had announced that he would take legal opinion from the state advocate general (AG) concerning Singh's suggested removal.
Anil Kumar Sinha, AG, suggested two alternatives to the government on this issue. He advised the government that it could wait for the final judgment of the Supreme Court (SC) or it could grant sanction under Section-197 of CrPc as requested by the Bihar government, since prima facie a case had been framed.
Bihar vigilance bureau had lodged FIR on August 20, 2002 against Singh and 10 others for misusing his position to embezzle funds and favour two NGOs. The case is related to Singh’s tenure as managing director of Bihar State Finance Corporation in 1996-97. Jharkhand government, however, had refused prosecution sanction in 2006 as requested by Bihar government.
