UP cops destroy Akhilesh's 'communal' excuse to suspend IAS officer

The suspension of IAS officer Durga Shakti Nagpal purportedly on the grounds of communal tension is looking flimsier every day.

Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav said that she had been penalised for the demolition of a wall at a disputed place of worship. “She had been suspended because she ordered the demolition of a religious place (read mosque), especially in the month of Ramzan. This is a sensitive issue and could have caused communal tension,” said Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav.

The excuse of communal tension has been flayed by opposition parties and other IAS officers, and now so have the local police.

According to this report in The Times of India:

The local police in Gautum Budh Nagar on Monday deflated the CM’s contention by stating that there was no communal flare-up in the area.

Adding credibility to the police claims is the fact that the government had not received any field report regarding communal tension in GB Nagar on Saturday. Sources in the state home department said such serious action is initiated against an officer only on the basis of a field report which outlines the need for urgency in such actions.

The demolition was done following the Supreme Court order which restricts the construction of any religious structure without the permission of the local administration”, Nagpal had told the local media.

And according to this Firstpost report , accounts from various quarters confirm that the suspension was the result of her aggressive approach to curb the sand mafia active in the western UP.

A month ago, she had got cases registered against more than 20 people involved in illegal quarrying and over 10 had been arrested in less than a fortnight. She also ensured about two dozen JCB machines involved in illegal quarrying were seized. She had also threatened that there would be no let-up in the fight against unauthorized dredgers.

The contractors are known for their alliances with and affinities to the high and mighty of the ruling parties, irrespective of who is in power.

“The government is giving a lame excuse for Nagpal’s suspension. The reality is that the government is trying to save the mafia and it had been waiting for some excuse to shift the officer from the site,” said LK Bajpai, the state president BJP.

“If maintaining communal harmony is the reason for the suspension then why has the government not suspended all those senior officials who failed to check the series of riots that has taken place in the state since the SP government came to power,” he added.

Meanwhile with the UP Chief Minister under increasing pressure to revoke the suspension, Yadav has said that he will review the decision on Wednesday.