Atishi Marlena
With the ouster of 10 advisors, consultants and aides of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) ministers on Tuesday, questions are being raised about the salaries that have already been paid to them. According to Delhi government sources, since the appointments were considered “void ab initio”, or having no legal validity since the beginning, questions about the salaries paid to them can be raised in the future. “All government accounts have to be audited. If the CAG or any other competent body raises questions about these posts and the expenditure incurred, we will not be able to provide a convincing answer,” said an official, who did not want to be named.
Among the 10 appointees who were named in the letter by the Ministry of Home Affairs, four had already quit over a year ago.
Raghav Chadha was employed for a duration of 45 days for Budget preparation in 2016. Advisor to Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia, Atishi Marlena, was drawing a salary of Re 1 per month and was appointed in July 2015. Amardeep Tiwari, media advisor to Law Minister Kailash Gahlot, was appointed on a salary between Rs 50,000 and Rs 60,000; while Arunoday Prakash, media advisor to the Deputy CM, was appointed on a salary of Rs 80,000 per month, sources said. Both were appointed in March 2015.
Chadha, on Wednesday, wrote to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, and submitted a cheque of Rs 2.50 — ‘returning’ the salary he had earned.
Raghav Chadha at the press conference. (Express Photo by Prem Nath Pandey)
The move, however, has not gone down well with party members. “The amount Chadha earned was next to nothing and it was easy for him to return it. The others cannot afford to do it. Why open a Pandora’s box?” said a senior party leader.
MHA officials, Wednesday, said the appointments were cancelled because, as per legal opinion, proper procedures were not followed in the whole exercise.
According to former Delhi Chief Secretary, Shailaja Chandra, in theory, the salaries paid could be recovered if the government wants to. “Even if salary is not drawn, appointment rules mandate that you follow a process for making appointment. In the absence thereof, the competent authority is within its rights to question the Delhi government and expect it to follow the laid down procedure,” she said.
A Delhi government spokesperson said that no such communication had been received from the Centre.
Meanwhile, sources in the government and AAP said that there were plans to appoint the removed appointees to boards and corporations, such as the DJB, DTC, and DDC.