Three officials suspended after MLA figured in BPL list

On the directions of Minister for Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (CAPD) Choudhary Zulfkar Ali, Jammu Divisional Commissioner Pawan Kotwal today suspended three senior officials of the Revenue Department after the name of sitting BJP MLA from Khour Krishan Lal Bhagat figured in the Below Poverty Line (BPL) list prepared by the authorities to provide ration.
Those who have been suspended are Tehsildar, Khour, Block Development Officer, Khour, and the Tehsil Supply Officer, Khour.
“We have taken a serious note of it because it is a glaring example of the non-serious approach being adopted by the authorities while preparing lists of beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act (NFSA) in Khour tehsil of the Akhnoor subdivision,” said the CAPD Minister. He said he had received complaints against inclusion of some influential persons in the list of beneficiaries who receive subsidised ration.
“We will take every possible step to ensure that only the deserving people are included in the list of beneficiaries who get subsidised ration,” the minister said, adding that a comprehensive plan is already in place to ensure transparency and accountability while preparing the lists.
Sources said when the CAPD Minister got information this morning about the inclusion of the sitting MLA in the updated list of the BPL category, he immediately wrote to the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, to take action against the officials responsible for the same.
An official handout issued this evening stated that Minister for Revenue, Relief and Rehabilitation Basharat Bukhari also brought the matter to the notice of the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu, who issued an order and placed three officials under suspension.
The Deputy Commissioner, Jammu, has been asked to conduct an inquiry into the case and furnish a report in three days to the Divisional Commissioner, Jammu.
The MLA’s name figured in the ‘priority category’ under the NFSA — formed to provide subsidised ration to the people under the BPL categories and to those who were earlier getting ration under the Antyodaya Anna Yojana scheme.