Defence Minister A K Antony defends former DRDO Organisation employee

[thestringshredder]

A Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) employee, sacked on the grounds that he was a perpetual troublemaker after blowing the lid off alleged irregularities in the recruitment procedure, has sought protection from the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) claiming he was harassed for being a whistleblower.

The CVC had sought response from the defence ministry’s vigilance wing before taking any action on the complaint filed by Prakash Singh, an administrative officer, who has been at loggerheads with the DRDO for some time now.

Singh was forced to go on premature retirement last year for alleging that his boss A.K. Maini had indulged in malpractices in the recruitment process. He had forwarded the complaint to the CBI.

The DRDO claimed that Singh was sacked because the allegation levelled by him was baseless and caused embarrassment to the organisation and defamation to his senior. It also said the officer had “acquired a habit of complaining against his colleagues, superior officers and other agencies like DCDA.”

The other charge against Singh was that “he had been involved in creating problem to the organisation by the hostile attitude towards his colleagues and officers that shows, he has not been performing his duties with the requisite quality”.

In its reply to the CVC, the defence ministry said that Singh has sought defence minister A.K Antony’s intervention for getting reinstated. It also said that allegations made by Singh about a scam in the recruitment exercise were being investigated by a high level committee in DRDO on the direction of the defence ministry.

The defence ministry has instructed DRDO to submit its report within a month.

The officer had complained to the CBI against some officers occupying key positions in the defence scientific establishment claiming irregularities in recruitment. But his identity was disclosed after the CBI referred his complaint to the DRDO’s vigilance wing.

Singh had approached the CVC earlier this year seeking protection under Whistleblower Resolution. The CVC on March 18 sought response from the vigilance wing of the defence ministry which came up with the reply on April 25.

Link - Defence Minister A K Antony defends former DRDO Organisation employee | idrw.org