Delhi LG asks CM to remove DDDC chief Jasmine Shah for 'misusing office for politics'

New Delhi, Nov 18: Delhi's Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena on Friday asked chief minister Arvind Kejriwal to remove Jasmine Shah from the post of vice chairman of the Delhi Dialogue and Development Commission (DDDC) for 'misusing his office for political purposes'.

The L-G also directed the CM to restrict Jasmine Shah from "discharging his duties" as the vice chairman of DDDC and from using any "privilege and facilities" associated with his office with immediate effect till a "decision is taken by the CM" in this regard.

Besides, the administration has sealed his office located at 33, ShamNath Marg in Delhi sealed in order to prevent his access to the premises.

The background

Earlier, a complaint was received by Delhi LG Secretariat in which it was alleged that there were impropriety and discrepancies in the power subsidy given by the Delhi government to BSES discoms.

Further, the complainant had alleged that a massive scam was effected by Jasmine Shah and Naveen Gupta, son of AAP Rajya Sabha MP ND Gupta, according to an India Today report.

Besides, BJP MP from West Delhi Parvesh Singh Verma had alleged Shah "acted as official spokesperson of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) for political gains, which is in violation of established procedures."

Who is Jasmine Shah?

Jasmine Shah has been the Vice Chairperson of the Dialogue and Development Commission, a position holding the rank of a minister in the Government of NCT of Delhi, since November 2018.

"Shah was the architect of Delhi's first comprehensive Outcome Budget for 2017-18, a first-of-its-kind initiative in India to bring in complete transparency and accountability in public spending," said the official website of DDDC.

(With input from ANI)