Remove tainted Noida officials by Friday or face action: HC to govt

The Allahabad High Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to implement its November 8 order for immediate removal of Noida chairman Rakesh Bahadur and chief executive officer Sanjeev Saran latest by December 14, and submit an affidavit in this regard.

The court has said that Chief Secretary Javed Usmani and Principal Secretary (Industrial Development) would be present before it on that date for further action, if the order is not complied with.

A single-judge bench of Justice Vikram Nath passed the order on December 7 on a contempt petition filed by one Nitin Deshwal.

Agreeing with Deshwal's contention that non-implementation of the November 8 order amounted to contempt of court, the bench said: "With such serious charges and the observations of the division bench of this court... the state is sleeping over the matter. This court requires to take stern action in the matter."

The court added: "By December 14, the opposite parties (chief secretary and other respondents) would ensure actual compliance in true letter and spirit of the directions of the division bench... and file an affidavit to that effect, failing which they would remain present before this court for further action against them."

The petitioner had pointed out that the government was not taking any action against the two officials even though there was no stay on the compliance of the November 8 order either by the high court or the Supreme Court.

On November 8, a division bench of the high court ordered immediate removal of the two officials. The court passed the order while hearing a PIL challenging the appointment of the two officials who had faced charges of financial wrongdoing during their previous tenure in the same posts between 2005 and 2007.

At that time, an SP government was in power. The previous BSP government had suspended the two officials and ordered departmental and criminal action against them. However, they were appointed again in May after the present SP government took over.

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