Ashok Khemka

Ashok Khemka
Born (1965-04-30) 30 April 1965 (age 59)
Kolkata, West Bengal, India
NationalityIndian
Education
OccupationBureaucrat
Years active1993–present
EmployerGovernment of India
OrganizationIndian Administrative Service
Known forIAS officer who cancelled the mutation of Robert Vadra -DLF land deal.

Ashok Khemka (अशोक खेमका) is an Indian civil service bureaucrat and an officer of the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) since 1991. As of January 2023, he has been transferred a total of 55 times during his career,[2] making him the second-most transferred bureaucrat in Haryana, surpassed only by retired IAS officer Pradeep Kasni.[3] Khemka is known for his role in addressing alleged irregularities in various departments where he served, including investigations into land deals during the tenure of former Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Hooda. He has been associated with inquiries into cases such as the DLF land grab case, the Sonipat-Kharkhoda IMT land case, and the Garhi Sampla Uddar Gagan land case.

Early life and education

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Ashok Khemka was born in Kolkata, India. He graduated from IIT Kharagpur in 1988 with a B.Tech in Computer Science and Engineering. He later completed a Ph.D. in Computer Science from TIFR and an MBA in Business Administration and Finance. After passing the Civil Services Examination, he was selected for the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) in the Haryana cadre. Additionally, he obtained an MA in Economics from IGNOU.[citation needed]

He is currently a degree candidate for Bachelor of Laws at Punjab University.[citation needed]

Career

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Khemka belongs to the 1991 batch IAS of the Haryana Cadre.[4] He has been repeatedly transferred by various state governments in his home cadre of Haryana after he exposed corruption in the departments he was posted to.[5][6]

Khemka was posted as Secretary to the Govt. of Haryana, Department of Archives and Archaeology on April 4, 2013.[7] He was also given the charge of DG Archives and Archaeology on April 26, 2013.[1] This was his 45th posting in his 20-year career excluding his 2-year training period.[1] In the previous month, he had exposed a deal that he thought to be untoward and had requested an inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The government of Haryana refused this[clarification needed] and a Bhiwani-based NGO filed PIL on the same scam.[citation needed]On October 18, 2013, CBI registered a preliminary enquiry into the alleged irregularities in the purchase of wheat seeds in HSDC, seeking registration of a case against officials of the National Cooperative Consumers Federation and the National Agriculture Cooperative Marketing Federation for selling seeds at inflated prices to HSDC.[8][9]

Khemka was previously Managing Director in Haryana Seeds Development Corporation.[7]

Chargesheets filed against Ashok Khemka

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In October, 2013, two chargesheets[10][11] for Khemka were filed, one of which accused him of failing his responsibilities at the Haryana Seed Development Corporation.[12][13]

Transfers under Khattar regime

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The transfers continued under the Manohar Lal Khattar-led Bharatiya Janata Party government, which came to power in 2014. Khemka was made the transport commissioner in November, 2014. But the truck owners went on strike after he launched a drive against overloading and oversized goods vehicles. He was transferred to the archaeology and museums department in April, 2015.[14]

In October, 2017, Khemka, as the principal secretary, department of social justice and women empowerment had a run-in with his own boss, Minister Krishna Bedi over the latter allegedly misusing a department vehicle for over a year. He had also expressed objection to alleged special treatment being given to Khattar's personal staff on the eve of Diwali. In November, he was transferred as the principal secretary in the youth affairs and sports department.[15] In March, 2019, he was transferred, for the 52nd time, to Science and Technology Department.[16]

Posting detail

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As of March, 2019, Khemka has been posted in 51 departments and is currently DG of Archives & Archaeology in Haryana state.[17]

Breach of trust allegations

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In May, 2022, former Haryana IAS officer Roshan Lal, former chairman of a committee for selecting candidates in the Haryana State Warehousing Corporation (HSWC) during Ashok Khemka's tenure as managing director, accused Khemka of appointing ineligible candidates as managers (Grade-I) based on dubious considerations, causing a breach of trust. When asked, Khemka refused to comment on the issue.[18]

Highlighted Land Deal corruption

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Khemka highlighted land deal corruption in Gurgaon and around for conversion of commercial land. As per the report there is corruption between ₹20,000 crore (US$2 billion) to ₹350,000 crore (US$42 billion).[19] Khemka was most recently Haryana's Director-General of Land Consolidation and Land Records-cum-Inspector-General of Registration. During his 80-day stint in the department, Khemka had detected serious irregularities in land transactions involving transfer of panchayat land worth several hundred crores of rupees to newly created real estate companies.[20] Khemka was transferred on October 11, 2012 and he took action on the matter after his transfer. He claims he has been harassed and transferred 40 times in the last 21 years for merely doing his job.[21] As the Managing Director of Haryana Seeds Development Corporation Limited, Khemka exposed its irregularities in just five months as its head following which he was transferred on April 4, 2013 and was replaced by B. S. Duggal, a Deputy Secretary five ranks below him.[7]

Vadra Land Deal

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The State Government constituted an Inquiry Committee of three senior IAS officers to nail Khemka on the cancellation of Vadra's land deal in village Sikhohpur (Gurgaon). Khemka responded to the report of the Inquiry Committee in his Comments to the State Government which is divided into 8 Chapters.[citation needed] The specific land deal of Robert Vadra is detailed in Chapter 6.[22]

Rao Inderjit Singh, a member of the Lok Sabha from Gurgaon has said that a detailed inquiry must be conducted to "substantiate or refute" the charges against Robert Vadra, whose business deals with real estate major DLF have been questioned by Ashok Khemka. He said that Mr Vadra's land dealings should be part of a larger investigation into alleged irregular practices in the governments appropriation and sale of nearly 1200 acres.[23]

Death threat

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After raising concerns over the illegal land acquisition of Robert Vadra (Priyanka Gandhi's husband) Khemka alleged that he had received death threats. He had raised a red flag over suspicious land deals between Congress president Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra.[24] In November, 2023 Haryana Government appointed financial Commissioner, Revenue, TVSN Prasad in to series of complaints made by Ashok Khemka against another officer Sajeev Verma[25] In March, 2024, Supreme Court set aside High Court order on higher ACR grade to officer Ashok Khemka.[26]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c d "Executive Record of Ashok Khemka". GOI. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 19 August 2013.
  2. ^ "IAS officer Ashok Khemka transferred for 52nd time in 27-year career". India Today.
  3. ^ "kasni retires today after 71 transfers in 35 years". Times of India. Times Of India. 28 February 2018. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  4. ^ "Whistleblower Khemka shifted 40 times in 21 years". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 18 October 2012.
  5. ^ "Time to check the Khemka syndrome". The Hindu.
  6. ^ "I am not a quitter, will stay in the system: Ashok Khemka". NDTV. 11 April 2013. Retrieved 11 April 2013.
  7. ^ a b c "Khemka shifted again as he exposes seedy deal". The Hindu.
  8. ^ "CBI begins inquiry into Ashok Khemka's complaint". The Economic Times. 19 October 2013. Retrieved 19 October 2013.
  9. ^ "CBI begins inquiry into Khemka's complaint on seed supply". NewsX. 18 October 2013. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013. Retrieved 18 October 2013.
  10. ^ "Haryana approves Khemka chargesheet, major penalty in offing". Zeenews. 27 September 2013.
  11. ^ "Robert Vadra back to haunt Ashok Khemka, chargesheeted again". One India Portal. 17 October 2013.
  12. ^ "Haryana govt gives the go ahead for charging Khemka in a case of seeds sales". IBN Live. 17 October 2013. Archived from the original on 20 October 2013.
  13. ^ "'10 chargesheets will be filed against me,' IAS officer Ashok Khemka to NDTV". NDTV. 19 October 2013.
  14. ^ "BJP emulates Congress, transfers Ashok Khemka again under pressure from transport lobby, mining mafias". India Today.
  15. ^ "Deja vu, Ashok Khemka tweets after Haryana IAS officer gets transferred 51st time". India Today.
  16. ^ "IAS officer Ashok Khemka transferred for 52nd time in 27-year career". India Today.
  17. ^ "Complete Bio-Data Ashok Khemka". National Informatics Centre, Government of India Portal. Archived from the original on 19 October 2012. Retrieved 16 October 2012.
  18. ^ "Khemka twisting facts, presented ineligible persons before us, says former IAS". Hindustan Times. 18 May 2022.
  19. ^ "IAS officer Ashok Khemka on his report on Robert Vadra land deals". NDTV News.
  20. ^ "Haryana IAS officer probing Vadra-DLF deal transferred". Zee News. 16 October 2012.
  21. ^ "Haryana IAS officer transferred". Times of India.
  22. ^ "Khemka stands his ground over report against Vadra". Yahoo with Hindustan Times News.
  23. ^ "Robert Vadra's land deal must be probed: Congress MP from Haryana". NDTV.
  24. ^ "Whistleblower Ashok Khemka gets fresh death threats, FIR lodged". India Today.
  25. ^ "IAS officers at loggerheads: Haryana orders fact-finding probe into cross-complaints". 23 November 2023.
  26. ^ "Supreme Court sets aside HC order on higher ACR grade to IAS officer Ashok Khemka". 12 March 2024.
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