New Delhi, Feb 26: The Delhi High Court has issued a notice to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in response to a petition filed by its former Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO), Sanjiv Chaturvedi, alleging perjury in an ongoing legal dispute.
A bench comprising Justices C Hari Shankar and Ajay Digpaul sought AIIMS' reply to Chaturvedi’s petition, filed under Section 340 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), which deals with false evidence and offenses against public justice.
The court, in its order dated February 24, directed AIIMS to submit its response within four weeks, with an advance copy to Chaturvedi’s counsel, who may file a rejoinder within the following four weeks.
Allegations of False Statements
Chaturvedi, an Indian Forest Services (IFS) officer and recipient of the 2015 Ramon Magsaysay Award, contends that AIIMS made false statements in a counter affidavit filed on August 17, 2016, regarding the procedural channel for drafting his annual performance appraisal report for the financial year 2014-15.The petitioner, who served as AIIMS' CVO from 2012 to 2014, had initiated several corruption-related actions at the institution. However, he was relieved from his post in August 2014, two years before the completion of his tenure in 2016.
Chaturvedi has urged the court to initiate criminal proceedings against AIIMS under Section 340 of CrPC read with Section 193 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) for allegedly making false statements under oath. His plea also seeks the imposition of an exemplary fine on AIIMS authorities for misleading the court.
The matter is scheduled for the next hearing in July.
