Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena Wednesday suspended Health Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj's Officer on Special Duty (OSD) R N Das with immediate effect for his alleged involvement in irregular and illegal registration of private nursing homes, officials said.

"The immediate cause for placing the officer under suspension is on account of reported misconduct with regard to unauthorized and illegal running of Jyoti Nursing Home, Shahadra beyond the valid registration period when he was also Medical Superintendent of Nursing Home Cell," an official said.

The BJP has also alleged Das's role in the registration process of a children's hospital in Vivek Vihar where six newborns were killed in a fire incident on Saturday night.

In the order issued on Wednesday, the directorate said, "The Hon'ble Lt. Governor, Delhi, in exercise of the powers conferred by sub-rule (1) of Rule-10 of the CCS (CCA) Rules, 1965, hereby, places the said Dr. R.N. Das, Officer on Special Duty (OSD) to Hon'ble Minister (Health), GNCTD, under suspension with immediate effect." Earlier last month, Das was issued a show cause notice by the Directorate of Vigilance in connection with the alleged irregularities in the procurement of various items like Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits, gloves, masks and Rapid Antigen Test (RAT) kits worth around Rs 60 crore during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2021.

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