UP Govt. Principal secretary Vijaya Shanker Pandey Dumped

Maya dumps key aide linked to Hasan Ali scam
Lucknow: UP chief minister Mayawati on Saturday dumped her close confidant and principal secretary Vijaya Shanker Pandey after he was linked by Enforcement Directorate to Hasan Ali, the Pune-based businessman being probed for a $8 billion money laundering scam.
UP cabinet secretary Shashank Shekhar Singh told reporters the CM had ordered Pandey’s removal and that the government was in no way responsible for the conduct of either Pandey and his close confidant, Jasvir Singh. He said the two were be open to any probe by the ED or the Supreme Court. Jasvir Singh, an IPS officer, was attached to Pandey as officer on special duty (OSD).
Pandey is likely to summoned by ED after a key Hassan Ali aide Amalendu Pandey said on oath that he had been in regular contact with the UP CM’s principal secretary as well as Puducherry Lt Governor Iqbal Singh.
Shashank Shekhar Singh said Pandey had been stripped of all charges, including the food and drug control department and secretariat administration, besides information and public relations. He was posted as member, revenue board.
Mention of Mayawati’s office in connection with Hasan Ali case came up in the Supreme Court on Friday when the ED counsel pointed out how her office was taking undue interest in allegedly derailing the probe.
The development gave BJP and the Samajwadi Party ammunition against Mayawati. Leader of opposition in the Vidhan Sabha, Shiv Pal Singh Yadav, said that Pandey was being made a scapegoat and alleged the government was reponsible for a role in the money-laundering scam. He said this only reaffirmed the perception that the government was auctioning the interest of the state by siphoning out public money.