In the wake of a raging controversy surrounding the Safe City Project for Bengaluru and the open rift between two senior IPS officers D Roopa and Hemant Nimbalkar, the two have been given new postings by the Karnataka government.
Nimbalkar who was Additional Commissioner (Administration), Bengaluru has been shifted to the Internal Security Department, Bengaluru. D Roopa, who was the first woman Home Secretary in the state has been posted as the Managing Director of Karnataka State Handicrafts Development Corporation Ltd, Bengaluru.
These transfers have been affected by the state government along with other transfers among the state’s IPS and IAS officers.
IPS Malini Krishnamoorthy has been appointed as Additional Director General of Police & Principal Secretary to Government (PCAS), Home Department. Additionally, IPS Dr. K Ramachandra Rao has been transferred to Grievances & Human Rights Department, Bengaluru.
The tendering process of the multi-crore Bengaluru Safe City Project has exposed rifts in the top IAS/IPS circles within the Karnataka government over alleged double standards in dealing with corruption charges. Roopa and Nimbalkar, Additional Commissioner of Police (Administration), Bengaluru and chief of the tendering committee for the project have exchanged allegations of wrongdoing regarding the project.
Roopa has alleged that Nimbalkar being the chief of the tendering committee was favouring a particular committee, violating norms. Nimbalkar on the other hand had alleged that Roopa, Home Secretary was interfering with the process without any authority. However, Roopa has maintained that she was made part of the decision-making process by the Chief Secretary himself.
She also has alleged in a letter she wrote to Chief Secretary Vijaya Bhaskar that while the Home Department had started a prompt enquiry against a “false and motivated” complaint against her, it has hesitated to do the same against Nimbalkar even after months since the CBI sought sanction of prosecution. The letter also mentions that the CBI has sought sanction of prosecution in September 2020.
(The story was first published in The News Minute and has been republished in an arrangement.)
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