Mired in controversy during her last stint here, Tanvi Garg, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the 2009 batch, has been posted back in her home town Chandigarh. Belonging to the Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram-Union Territories (AGMUT) cadre, Garg is at present posted in Andaman and Nicobar Islands as director-cum-secretary, sports and personnel. In the reshuffle on Tuesday, the Union ministry of home affairs asked the authorities there to relieve her within 15 days.
She is set to be in the top echelons this time. During her last stint in Chandigarh (2011-14), controversies included a cheque bounce case, illegal detention of a Sector 44 resident by the police, and misuse of power in the Chandigarh Industrial and Tourism Development Corporation (CITCO). She had held charges then that included managing director, CITCO; additional deputy commissioner (ADC), and tourism director.
As for the cheque bounce controversy, in 2014, a resident of Sector 38, Rajat Gupta, filed a case against Garg alleging that she had taken Rs 30 lakh from him and returned the money through a cheque, which was dishonoured. Later, Tanvi too filed a case of cheque theft against Gupta. The case is pending in the court of additional district and sessions judge, Chandigarh.
Before that, she hot the headlines in April 2013, when she allegedly managed to get Vikrant, a resident of Sector 44, placed in unlawful police custody for 15 hours following an “almost” road mishap. Garg was enraged after a jeep being driven by Vikrant narrowly missed a collision with her official vehicle. Vikrant was picked up from his residence on April 17 evening and kept in custody overnight. A case was registered against him.
{{/usCountry}}Before that, she hot the headlines in April 2013, when she allegedly managed to get Vikrant, a resident of Sector 44, placed in unlawful police custody for 15 hours following an “almost” road mishap. Garg was enraged after a jeep being driven by Vikrant narrowly missed a collision with her official vehicle. Vikrant was picked up from his residence on April 17 evening and kept in custody overnight. A case was registered against him.
{{/usCountry}}But such was the controversy that even the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) sought a report from the police. Interestingly, on April 18 Vikrant was granted bail by Tanvi Garg being sub-divisional magistrate! Later, her driver formally withdrew the complaint against Vikrant and he was discharged of the allegations.
Also in 2013, while holding the additional charge as CITCO MD, Garg was alleged to have to misused the official vehicle by taking it to Delhi and Mussoorie in violation of orders of the UT adviser. Norms say no officer is allowed to take an official vehicle outside city without permission of the adviser, whereas Garg took it even for her personal use. A social organisation even lodged complaints with higher authorities in the UT administration and the MHA, but the matter was hushed up.