Vigilance notice to IAS officer for demolishing 15th century monument in Delhi to build bungalow: Report
New Delhi: Delhi government’s Vigilance Department has served a notice to former Jal Board chief Udit Prakash Rai in connection with the alleged illegal demolition of a 15th-century palace in Delhi's Jal Vihar and the construction of a grand bungalow in its place, NDTV reported.
He has been accused of facilitating the demolition, and allotting the bungalow to himself when it was built, the report stated.
The family of Udit Prakash Rai resides in the bungalow despite notices to vacate it. Rai is a 2007 batch IAS officer and is currently posted in Mizoram and has been given two weeks’ notice to respond to the Vigilance notice.
The razed monument was a palace dating back to the Pathan period and was the only surviving remnant of the Khizrabad city established by Khizr Khan of the Sayyid dynasty. The palace was under the jurisdiction of the Delhi Jal Board.
According to the notice issued by the Vigilance Department on Wednesday, the Jal Board was supposed to transfer the ownership of the monument to the Archaeological Survey of India in January 2021. However, during a joint inspection in January, officials discovered that the monument was missing, the report stated.
The Vigilance Department has claimed that Udit Prakash Rai had blocked the handover, the report added.
Previously, there was a fort-like structure that covered a vast area, but now a bungalow has been constructed in its place, locals told NDTV. Some of the ruins of the original structure can still be seen nearby.
Several political parties, such as the BJP and Trinamool Congress, have demanded action following the demolition of the monument.
Delhi BJP chief Virendra Sachdeva wrote a letter to Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena, calling for a high-level investigation into the matter.
"Only in India. Fifteenth-century monument demolished to construct govt officer's bungalow. Are the Archaeological Survey of India and Ministry of Culture napping yet again? Urging G Kishan Reddy (Union Minister For Culture and Tourism) to look at this," tweeted Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra.
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