VMC initiates action against 2 of 6 officials issued show-cause notice in Harni case

Executive Engineer Rajesh Chauhan — the complainant in the FIR filed in the case, Deputy Engineer Jignesh Shah, another official Mukesh Ajmeri and AAE Mitesh Mali from Futuristic Planning Cell were given the show-cause notices. East Zone Executive Engineer Paresh Patel and North Zone AAE Jigar Sayaniya were the others who received the notices.

While Mali was later terminated, Sayaniya was suspended. Incidentally, Patel was originally a part of the Futuristic Planning Cell, officials said.

The notice, The Indian Express has learnt, stated that it was the duty of North Zone to ensure that the “developer of Harni Motnath Lake followed the protocols of acquiring permissions, licences as well as appointing trained staff at the site”. “It was your responsibility to inspect the same… It was your duty to ensure that the necessary number of CCTV cameras had been installed and whether safety equipment was available for boating facility and other rides; whether the NOC of the fire department had been procured,” it states.

Additional assistant engineers during their protest in Vadodara on Monday. (Express photo by Bhupendra Rana)

Meanwhile, nearly 150 AAEs (Civil) of VMC took mass Casual Leave on Monday in protest against the disciplinary action against their colleagues claiming the “big fish had been let go”. The protest began at Badamdi Baug, where the municipal Central Command and Control Centre is located, and then proceeded towards the VMC head office at Khanderao market.

The protesting AAEs contended that their colleagues were victimised for “following instructions” and handed over a memorandum to Municipal Commissioner Dilip Rana, giving an ultimatum of 24 hours to withdraw the decision and immediately reinstate the two AAEs.

However, Rana told The Indian Express that an internal inquiry by the civic body found the officers responsible. “We conducted an internal inquiry and found that the Futuristic Planning Cell, as well as the East Zone office, under which the Lake Zone first came and then the North Zone, were equally responsible. While it is true that the Futuristic department issued the tender and awarded the contract and should have monitored the project, it is not true that the Zone offices can just say that they did not know about it… A Zone officer is equal to the circle officer of a village and has to take responsibility,” Rana said.

He added that the other four officials have also replied to the show-cause notices and the civic body was contemplating action against them. “We have pulled them all up because there should have been coordination and communication about the duties… Regarding the protests, I have made the protesting AAEs understand that it is a report of an internal inquiry and they have understood the same,” he said.

Interestingly, in a reply given during the departmental inquiry conducted by VMC, the officials of the East and North zones had contended that they were “never informed” that they were “responsible for inspecting the Harni Lake Zone and had never been handed over any files pertaining to the project”. The VMC’s internal inquiry has questioned the officials of the East Zone, under whose jurisdiction the Harni Lake Zone came until April 2022, when the VMC effected a “one-ward system” to unify the election and administration wards. Thereafter, the Lake Zone was transferred to the jurisdiction of the North Zone.

The two-page facsimile show-cause notice issued to two officers of the East and North Zones describes the details of the contract signed between VMC and the developers. Contending that the officers “failed to sincerely perform their duties”, the notice states, “Since April 1, 2022, after the administrative wards were assigned as per the election wards, it was the duty of the North Zone to ensure that the developer of Harni Motnath Lake followed the protocols of acquiring permissions, licences as well as appointing trained staff at the site. It was your responsibility to inspect the same… It was your duty to ensure that the necessary number of CCTV cameras had been installed and whether safety equipment was available for boating facility and other rides; whether the NOC of the fire department had been procured.”

The notice specifically blames the North Zone officers for their failure. “…since you did not show sincerity towards your work, you neglected very important duties. Why should a disciplinary action not be initiated against you under the GPMC Act?” the notice states.

However, BJP Corporator Ashish Joshi of Ward 15, where most of the victims resided, Monday questioned the VMC decision to not issue a show-cause notice to the officials leading the Futuristic Planning Cell. Joshi, who had issued an ultimatum to Rana in the General Board to “fix the liability” of the officials, said, “The show-cause notice issued to the officers is an eyewash. Rajesh Chauhan had been suspended a few years ago in the case of contaminated water from the Nimeta filtration plant. No show-cause notice was even served then. This time, the officers, who are actually responsible, have not even been served the notice. Why has the head of department of the Futuristic Planning Cell, who has signed each and every page of the tender document and the work order, not even been served a show-cause notice?”

Meanwhile, the Special Investigation team (SIT) investigating the case conducted a search of the Harni Lake Monday taking along prime accused Vatsal Shah who has told the police that his mobile phone fell into the lake while “helping” in the rescue operations on January 18.

“The team conducted a search. A panchnama of the Lake Zone was also conducted earlier in presence of Vatsal (who was one of the signing authorities among the partners),” said Commissioner of Police Anupam Singh Gahlaut.

He added the police had received the documents of VMC’s inquiry report and are ascertaining the “liability of the officials”. “We will examine what VMC has considered while concluding the report and what can be taken as a criminal offence. If any officer is found to have indulged in criminal negligence, they will be booked. The inquiry is in progress,” Gahlaut said. The VMC is slated to submit its inquiry report as well as an action taken summary in the Gujarat High Court this week.