DCW chief Swati Maliwal questioned by ACB on charges of 'illegal' recruitment in women's panel

New Delhi: DCW chief Swati Maliwal was questioned on Monday for over two hours by Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB) officials in connection with allegations of “illegal” recruitment in the women’s panel. A team comprising five ACB officers reached the office of the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) at 11 am. The officers also handed over a questionnaire to Maliwal seeking her reply to 27 queries within a week’s time. The ACB has taken up the probe on a complaint by former DCW chief Barkha Shukla Singh, who alleged that several AAP supporters were given plum posts in the women’s panel. Singh, in her complaint, listed the names of 85 people who, she claimed, got jobs “without requisite credentials”. [caption id=“attachment_3011884” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  A file photo of Swati Maliwal. PTI[/caption] “I have been asked 27 questions and given a week’s time to reply. We have been asked how we did so many appointments to the women’s panel. In a way, they are asking how did we manage to do so much work?” Maliwal told reporters after her questioning ended. She termed the probe as an “attempt” to “silence” the women’s panel that has been raising a lot of questions. “In one year, we have handled 11,500 cases and attended 2.25 lakh calls on helpline number 181. The former DCW chief handled only one case. DCW asks questions whenever a rape is reported. This is disturbing a lot of people. But we will continue to raise questions,” she said. The DCW chief said she will answer the questions asked by the ACB within a week and “fully cooperate” with the probe by providing all documents sought by the investigative agency. Maliwal alleged that Singh also appointed members to the panel during her tenure despite handling only one case in eight years. “We followed the due process for appointing members to the panel. While she (Singh) appointed wives of IAS and IPS officers without giving an advertisement for recruitment. We have all the documents and we will give them to the ACB.” Maliwal asserted that all the appointments in her tenure have been made following the “due procedure” and nobody was being given any “benefit”.