ACB files case against employees, contractors of Delhi Arogya Kosh

The Anti Corruption Branch (ACB) initiated a case on Friday against certain contractors and employees associated with the Delhi Arogya Kosh over allegations of soliciting payments from outsourced staffers,  officials said.

A committee established by the Directorate General of Health Services probed complaints from outsourced staffers regarding alleged unethical demands for payments by Pradeep Lamba and Manish Garg, representing M/s Geetanshi Services, according to a senior police official.

The complaint centered on the hiring of eight contractual staff by the Delhi Arogya Kosh (DAK) through M/s Geetanshi Services in Mandawali for a two-year period starting October 25, 2022.

Allegedly, the two representatives coerced outsourced staffers into paying Rs 25,000 annually and threatened termination of services if payments weren’t made, the officer revealed.

Following an inquiry, it surfaced that Rs 1,34,000 had been transferred via UPI to the accused persons and other accounts provided by them. The affected outsourced staffers also submitted audio recordings featuring the accused parties.

On October 11, a letter from the Assistant Director, Directorate of Vigilance, Delhi government, urging a comprehensive investigation into the matter reached the office of the Anti Corruption Branch, officials disclosed.

The outsourced staffers underwent examination, and their statements were recorded. They claimed to have raised grievances with DAK government officials, yet no action was taken.

Subsequently, the contractual employees escalated the issue to higher officials. Only after intervention did higher officials constitute an inquiry committee. The committee’s report confirmed the allegations, the officer noted.

DAK disbursed the salary amount to Geetanshi Services, which was then reimbursed to outsourced staffers with deductions. However, such deductions were unauthorized, stated Joint Commissioner of Police (Anti Corruption Branch) Madhur Verma.

Despite the inquiry committee’s findings, the DAK’s responsible party failed to blacklist the accused company or forfeit its performance security amount, officials added.

A case was registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the IPC. An ongoing investigation aims to determine the involvement of DAK government officials, Verma concluded. (With inputs from PTI)