Ex-MP complains to defence ministry and PMO about ‘corruption at the highest level’, alleges official used her influence to get the contract for husband.
New Delhi: India’s top defence finance bureaucrat is facing questions after her ex-serviceman husband got a government contract in an alleged violation of rules.
A conflict of interest complaint has been filed with the defence ministry and the Prime Minister’s Office against Veena Prasad, the Controller General of Defence Accounts (CGDA), and her husband, Maj. Gen. (retd) V.N. Prasad. The latter is accused of hiding the fact that he works with a top private sector defence company, while bagging a government-sponsored contract for transporting coal through his own firm, Trispace Logistics Private Limited.
The contract was reserved for ex-servicemen, with the condition being that the winning bidder should not be employed with any private sector firm, or hold a government job.
The five-year contract was awarded in June 2016, under a sponsored scheme of the department of ex-servicemen welfare. Under the contract, Maj. Gen. Prasad’s company was to purchase trucks and loaders to transport coal from the Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd in Odisha. The company would be paid as per the bills it would provide to Mahanadi for the coal transported.
But Maj. Gen. Prasad continued working for the defence firm, which is active in manufacturing land systems and naval vessels. He filed a petition in the Delhi High Court, contending that the condition imposed was unfair. His case, however, was dismissed by the court earlier this year.
The complaint against the couple was lodged on 6 November by former MP Dharmanna Sadul, who has alleged that the contract was awarded to Prasad by the Directorate General of Resettlement (DGR) due to his wife’s influence.
Sadul has written that Veena Prasad should be investigated for misconduct. “How DGR has sponsored the company M/s Trispace Logistics when Maj. Gen. Prasad was already employed reflect the misuse of administrative authority by CGDA and corrupt practices at highest level [sic],” the letter reads.
Response to the charges
The Prasads have strongly refuted the charges.
“I have never interfered in my husband’s career. We have kept our professional lives totally apart. There is no question of me speaking with the DGR or anyone else for a favour,” Veena Prasad told ThePrint, adding that after learning about the complaint, she discussed the matter with top officials in the ministry.
The DGR has a number of schemes to give employment opportunities to retired officers, but most have strict conditions that need to be followed to be eligible. In the case of the coal loading and transportation contract given to Prasad, one of the guidelines was that the winner should not be employed elsewhere.
However, he contends that the guidelines are illegal and arbitrary, and infringe on the basic right to livelihood. “I am no longer governed by the Army Act, and my right as a civilian to earn a livelihood cannot be challenged by some guidelines on a website. I am fighting this matter in the court,” he told ThePrint.
Prasad said he had to file an affidavit under duress, certifying that he was not holding a private sector job. “Immediately after I got the sponsorship, I challenged the matter in the high court. It was an illegal condition,” Prasad said, adding that several veterans have been affected by such a clause across the country.
Documents and court records accessed by ThePrint show that Prasad’s contention was, however, dismissed by the Delhi High Court, on the grounds that the retired officer should have known the implications of affirming the affidavit. The officer has now challenged the order.
A detailed questionnaire sent by ThePrint to the defence ministry on the controversy is yet to be answered. Complainant Sadul, on the other hand, told ThePrint that he wants to bring out “corruption at the highest levels”, but has also not received any response yet from the ministry or the PMO.