Gurugram: Haryana minister Anil Vij has been missing in action from the state health department for more than a month.
Perturbed by the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) allegedly interfering in his department’s functioning, Vij hasn’t cleared any file pertaining to the health department since 5 October, ThePrint has learnt. This was the day Rajesh Khullar, chief principal secretary at the CMO, held a review meeting with officers of the department at Panchkula.
Vij was not kept in the loop about this meeting, it is learnt. Subsequently, he gave a miss to a regional conference on AYUSH held in Chandigarh on 10 November despite holding the AYUSH portfolio himself, Haryana being the host state, and Union minister Sarbanada Sonowal being present to inaugurate the event.
In contrast, Vij has been active at the home department, another portfolio he holds. Last month, he ordered the suspension of 372 investigating officers who had not completed probes in cases assigned to them for more than a year.
When contacted by The Print, Vij refused to comment. However, sources privy to the development said the minister is upset by the CMO’s “interference” in his department and has made it known in the government that he won’t attend to the health department’s work until this issue is resolved.
“The minister has not cleared any file pertaining to the health department since 5 October. He told some BJP MLAs who approached him during the first half of October for their constituency-related work in connection with the health department that he is no longer looking after this department and they should approach the CMO for it,” a source close to Vij told The Print Saturday.
The source added: “However, few people come to him for work related to the health department because the fact that he is missing from action on that front is no longer a secret. The minister has already brought this matter to the top leaders of the BJP at the Centre.”
The meeting chaired by Khullar on 5 October was attended by his wife, Dr Sonia Khullar, a senior government doctor and currently the director general of health services in the state. G. Anupama, additional chief secretary of the health and family welfare department, and Rajnarain Kaushik, mission director of the National Health Mission, Haryana, were also among those present.
ThePrint attempted to reach Khullar through telephone calls and via text message. This article will be updated if he responds.
However, a senior government functionary posted at the CMO said that Khullar was asked to hold the review meeting because of issues in the health department’s functioning.
“Khullar didn’t call the review meeting on his own, but he was asked by CM saab because there were some pending issues in the Health Department. In our political system, the chief minister is the head of the council of ministers. The ministers are appointed on the CM’s recommendation and their departments are reshuffled on his recommendation. The officers in the CMO work on behalf of the CM,” said the functionary.
He added: “Hence, there is no question of interference by the CMO if the CM wants one of his officers to review the functioning of any of the departments.”
He also said, however, that the issue would be resolved very soon.
When contacted, Sanjay Sharma, state spokesperson of the BJP, said this matter has nothing to do with the party organisation and the issue, if any, is between the CM and his minister.
“The BJP’s state president, Nayab Singh Saini, recently met Vij. But this issue didn’t crop up in their meeting. The party’s state chief met the minister to pay a courtesy visit as he was recently appointed state president of the party,” said Sharma.
The BJP last month appointed Saini as state president of the party in place of O.P. Dhankar, who had held the post for more than three years.
This isn’t the first face-off between Vij and Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. In December 2020, Vij was divested of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which had been part of the home department. This occurred after Vij pushed for the CID to share intelligence inputs with him and not the CM alone.
Then, in January this year, Vij lost two key departments — technical education and science and technology — as both were merged with higher education, a portfolio held by minister Mool Chand Sharma.
Besides the home, health and AYUSH departments, Vij currently also holds the portfolio of medical education and research.
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Who is Rajesh Khullar
Rajesh Khullar is a retired 1988-batch IAS officer of the Haryana cadre. During Khattar’s first term, Khullar was principal secretary in his office. However, in September 2020, Khullar was appointed as executive director of the World Bank in Washington DC for a period of three years.
After this — just days before his retirement on 31 August this year — he rejoined the Haryana government as additional chief secretary and financial commissioner, revenue, disaster management, and consolidation.
Then, a day after his retirement, Khattar appointed him chief principal secretary in his office in place of Depinder Singh Dhesi, another retired IAS officer of the 1982 batch who had retired as chief secretary.
Dhesi was later appointed principal advisor, Urban Development and entrusted with the overall superintendence and guidance of the metropolitan authorities of Faridabad, Gurugram and Sonipat.
(Edited by Rohan Manoj)
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