IAS officer Sanjeev Khirwar, who was shunted out of the national capital in 2022 amid allegations that he emptied a stadium to “walk his dog”, is the new Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) commissioner. He will be overtaking Ashwani Kumar, a 1992 AGMUT cadre IAS officer appointed in 2024 as MCD Commissioner, news agency ANI reported.
Khirwar was transferred to Ladakh following the controversy, and was serving as the Secretary in the union territory from 2022 to 2026.
“Exercising powers conferred by Section 54 of the Delhi Municipal Corporation Act, 1957, the Central Government has appointed Sanjeev Khirwar, LAS (AGMUT:1994) as Commissioner of Municipal Corporation of Delhi,” the notification read on Wednesday.
What is the controversy
In May, 2022, a huge row had erupted after The Indian Express reported that Delhi government-run Thyagraj Stadium, where young athletes practice, was being closed for sports activities earlier than usual so that Khirwar, then Delhi’s Principal Secretary (Revenue), could walk his dog.
Following the row, the Ministry of Home Affairs transferred Khirwar and his wife Rinku Dugga, the Arunachal Pradesh, Goa, Mizoram and Union Territory (AGMUT) cadre IAS officers out of Delhi as punishment for their act.
Besides serving as Principal Secretary (Revenue) and the Divisional Commissioner, Khirwar held the additional charge of the Environment Secretary in the Delhi government at the time.
The MHA notification was issued after Delhi Chief Secretary submitted a report to it in the evening on the factual position of the then news report.
“The MHA had sought a report from the Chief Secretary, Delhi, on the news report regarding the misuse of facilities at Thyagraj Stadium by Sanjeev Khirwar and his wife, Rinku Dugga. Chief Secretary, Delhi, submitted a report later in the evening on the factual position to the MHA. In the meantime, Khirwar has been transferred by MHA to Ladakh and Dhugga to Arunachal Pradesh. Necessary action will be initiated based on the report,” news agency ANI reported quoting MHA sources.
Khirwar served as the Private Secretary to the Women and Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath between 2009 and 2014. He was then posted at the Commerce Ministry and transferred to Delhi in 2018 as the Secretary of Health and Family Welfare. Over the past few years, he has been posted in the environment, general administration and revenue departments. |
