Bhopal, November 04 (Pervez Bari): The Madhya Pradesh Foundation Day celebrations on November 1 proved to be a great embarrassment for the Bharatiya Janata Party ruled state government due to a major goof up by the executing agencies in the run up to the D-Day.
The theme of the Foundation Day celebrations being “Beti” (daughter), the State government got huge hoardings put up all over the city under the heading “Pradesh Ki Gauravshali Betiyan” (State’s Daughters of Pride) wherein six women achievers of the state were highlighted as part of a government campaign for the girl child which has been christened as “Beti Bachao Abhiyan” (Save Daughter Campaign).
In these hoardings as a part of Foundation Day celebrations a photo of Mrs. Tinu Joshi, a tainted lady IAS officer was used, probably inadvertently, who has been suspended for corruption, along with five other women achievers in place of Mrs. Nirmala Buch, a retired IAS officer who went to become the first lady Chief secretary in the Madhya Pradesh Government. Her hoarding was removed from Bhopal amid considerable embarrassment for the local administration.
Along with Mrs. Tinu Joshi’s picture five other photos of leading lady achievers of the state were put on the hoardings with brief profile which included: former Chief Minister Ms Uma Bharti, Hindi poetess Ms Subhadra Kumari Chauhan, educationist Shalini Tai Moghe, noted ballet dancer Gulvardhan and former Deputy Chief Minister Mrs. Jamuna Devi to promote the save the girl child campaign on the occasion of Madhya Pradesh Foundation Day celebrations. It may be noted that Madhya Pradesh has one of the worst records for female infanticide among Indian states.
This is not for the first time that the state government officials made blunders. Earlier, Mrs. Tinu Joshi’s message was distributed in the Women & Child Development Department’s booklet released to mark the Atal Bal Arogya Mission even when she was suspended for possession of disproportionate properties.
It may be pointed out here that when Mrs. Tinu Joshi’s house was raided by the Income Tax sleuths last year it yielded cash to the tune of Rs. three crores. She was suspended last year along with her husband, Mr. Arvind Joshi, who is also an IAS officer. Their corruption is alleged to have created assets worth Rs. 30 crores for the couple.
Meanwhile, it may be mentioned here that suspended IAS officer Mrs. Tinu Joshi has pleaded ignorance about the investments made by her husband, also an IAS officer, Arvind Joshi. In her reply to the Lokayukta’s (Vigilance Commissioner’s) notice, she reportedly said that she should not be held responsible for what her husband did.
“Being a public servant, I am not only a separate person but also a separate legal identity. And in respect of the IT Act, I have the status of an independent Income Tax assessee… therefore I can’t be held responsible for any acts of alleged omission or commission or possession of any assets by any other person, may he be my husband,” responded Tinu Joshi in a written communication to the Lokayukta office.
She requested the investigators to deal with her case separately. “Assessment of my income expenditure and assets may please be dealt with separately from the income expenditures, assets of my husband,” she wrote.
Mrs. Tinu Joshi also washed her hands off share-trading and investments allegedly made by her husband in her name. She claimed that she was not aware of the quantum of the amount deposited or its nature. “I don’t even know how much investment has been done in my name in the shares, since my husband managed the entire thing in my name”.
She also claimed ignorance about the total amount withdrawn in favour of trading corporation in her name citing that she used to give blank signed cheques to her husband. ” Rs. 11, 63,700 were invested in shares through STCI in my name by my husband without my knowledge,” Tinu explained in the letter. (pervezbari@eth.net)