'Huge staff shortage' in shelter home where 14 inmates died: Delhi Assembly committee

New Delhi, Aug 5 (PTI) The Committee on Petitions of Delhi Assembly on Monday claimed "huge shortage" of staff at the Asha Kiran shelter home in Rohini where 14 inmates died last month.

The committee, chaired by AAP MLA Kuldeep Kumar, also held a meeting with the officers of the Asha Kiran shelter home in the assembly.

In a press conference later, Kumar alleged that an officer previously suspended for five years after his arrest by the CBI had been appointed as the shelter home's administrator on the direction of Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena.

"The LG office has been issuing false statement over the appointment of administrator of the shelter home. The administrator was appointed on October 4, 2022 by the LG without any involvement of the minister in charge of the social welfare department," Kumar claimed.

Senior AAP leader and Delhi minister Saurabh Bharadwaj had on August 3 claimed that administrator of the shelter home Rahul Agarwal was arrested by the CBI in 2016 for taking "bribe" and remained suspended for five years.

Kumar said there is a "huge shortage" of staff at the shelter home, saying the committee will write a letter to the LG seeking his explanation on the vacancies and the reason why no officer was punished for negligence leading to the deaths of 14 inmates of the facility in July, he said.

As many as 33 auxiliary nurse midwife and two other staff have not been paid salaries for six months and their contracts have also not been renewed, he added.

The committee will hold more meetings with the shelter home's officers and submit its report to the Speaker of the Assembly, he said.

The committee had visited the shelter home two days ago to inquire into the series of deaths of inmates.

Meanwhile, Delhi cabinet minister Atishi said the government has received an interim report of the magisterial probe.

"They have sought more time to complete the magisterial probe. Thirteen adults and a minor's postmortem report is awaited and further action will be taken on the basis of the report," she said.

"There were severely intellectually disabled people who had comorbidities. The postmortem report will clear the cause of their deaths," she added.

However, the minister reiterated that if any negligence is found, the guilty officers won't be spared.

"I want to tell Delhiites that if negligence of any administrative officer, medical staff, or social welfare department (officer) is found in the matter, strict action will be taken. No officer will be spared. Action will be taken with zero tolerance," she stressed.

The minister said that people in shelter homes cannot take care of themselves and therefore, the government has increased responsibility to take care of them with sensitivity.

"Even if one per cent negligence is found, strict action will be taken," she added.

The city government had on August 2 ordered a magisterial probe into the death of 14 inmates of the Asha Kiran shelter home in Rohini last month.

The LG has also directed an investigation into the running of the Delhi government's shelter homes, including the deaths at Asha Kiran. He termed the deaths "an act of criminality against the most disadvantaged".

Asha Kiran is a Delhi government-run facility for "mentally challenged" and comes under its Social Welfare Department. PTI