When Directorate of Enforcement (ED) had raided residence and office of former IAS officer Subodh Agarwal, the then Additional Chief Secretary (ACS) of PHED in connection with the alleged Jal Jeevan Mission scam, it was then anticipated that he would be either put on Awaiting Posting Order (APO) or suspended. But interestingly he was not even transferred from the post.
Agarwal was transferred only in January 2024 when Bhajan Lal Sharma took over as the Chief Minister. However, Agarwal was later arrested by Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) in April 2026 after he had retired in December 2025.
In the case of Shikhar Agarwal, who is serving as ACS Industries and Chairman RIICO along with several other portfolios related to industrial development, Bhajan Lal government took a prompt action putting him on APO following media report, which allegedly highlighted his investment in multiple properties with a single company. The state government gave a strong message by offloading charge from an officer, who had once worked closely with Chief Minister as ACS.
“Bhajan Lal Sharma has always shown zero tolerance towards corruption. The number of prosecution sanction he gave during his tenure against corrupt officials is exemplary. The CMO is also working sensibly in maintaining the clean image that Bhajan Lal government is carrying,” said RC Jain, former IAS officer, who has held key positions including serving in CMO.
However, there are a few officers who believe that the action was little harsh specially when Agarwal is away on a foreign trip.
“The state government should not act merely on a media report. It should have sought explanation from Agarwal before taking any action,” said a senior IAS officer.
The state government, however has shown some generosity towards Agarwal's wife IPS officer Prashakha Mathur, who also allegedly own 14 villas as per the media report. Also, according to Shikhar Agarwal, detail of these assets are not being shown in her Immovable Property Return (IPR) due to some technical glitch.
Prashakha, a 1995 batch officer, continues to serve as Additional Director General (ADG) Police, Planning, Modernisation and Welfare.
Ram Kumar Kaushik is a seasoned journalist with over 25 years of experience across mediums. The architect of this news website, he is also a consultant with several media groups. He was formerly the group managing editor of ITV Network (NewsX, India News and The Sunday Guardian) and its digital products.
