Delhi L-G Removes 223 DCW Staff, Deems Swati Maliwal's Appointments 'Illegal'

The Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena has given the green light to remove 223 contractual workers from the Delhi Commission for Women, deeming their employment "irregular" and "illegal". The DCW received an official notice for their immediate removal dated 29 April.

"The government's approval has been granted to DCW to terminate the services of all contractual staff immediately who have been hired by the DCW at any point in time, exceeding its delegated powers and without following various prescribed procedures, thereby violating DCW Act/rules/regulations/guidelines issued by the Government of NCT of Delhi," the notice stated.

It is alleged that the former chairperson of the DCW, Swati Maliwal, had appointed the staffers without permission, contravening the rules.

Earlier this year, the Delhi High Court halted the trial court's proceedings against Maliwal in the Delhi Police Anti-Corruption Branch's case regarding graft allegations for appointing individuals associated with her or those linked to the AAP between July 2015 and August 2016.

A single-judge bench of Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani noted that prima facie, the "essential ingredient of offence under Section 13(1)(d)(ii) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, namely obtaining of any valuable thing or pecuniary advantage is evidently missing" from the chargesheet. Therefore, the order on charge framed by the Special Judge, Rouse Avenue Courts against Maliwal necessitates "closer consideration".

The case was filed based on the complaint of former MLA Barkha Singh Shukla, who alleged irregularities in the DCW during Maliwal's tenure.