Delhi L-G suspends Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj's OSD

He was suspended with immediate effect in connection with alleged irregularities in the procurement of medical kits.

New Delhi: Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena Wednesday suspended Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj's Officer on Special Duty (OSD) R N Das with immediate effect in connection with alleged irregularities in the procurement of medical kits, according to an official order.

Das was issued a show cause notice by the Directorate of Vigilance in April in connection with the alleged irregularities in the procurement of various items like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits, gloves, masks and Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) kits worth around Rs 60 crore during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.

In the order issued on Wednesday, the directorate said, "The Hon'ble Lt. Governor, Delhi, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-rule (1) of Rule-10 of the CCS (CCA) Rules, 1965, hereby, places the said Dr. R N Das, Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Hon'ble Minister (Health), GNCTD, under suspension with immediate effect". The BJP has also alleged Das's role in the registration process of a children's hospital in Vivek Vihar where six newborns were killed in a fire incident on Saturday night.