Gandhinagar: The Gujarat Government has suspended Ayush Sanjeev Oak, IAS, the Collector of Valsad district.

The order from the Sachivalaya stated, “Disciplinary proceedings against Shri Aayush Sanjeev Oak, IAS (RR:GJ:2011), Collector, Valsad, are contemplated for serious charges of grave negligence causing a situation involving a huge financial loss to the government exchequer while dealing with matters of revenue land during his tenure as Collector, Surat, from the period of 23/06/2021 to 01/02/2024.

NOW, THEREFORE, the Government of Gujarat, in exercise of the powers conferred by clause (a) of sub-rule (1) of Rule 3 of the All India Services (Discipline & Appeal) Rules, 1969, hereby places Shri Aayush Sanjeev Oak, IAS, under suspension with immediate effect.”

A R Jha, the resident additional collector of Valsad, has been assigned the additional responsibility of the Valsad collector role until further notice.

Oak’s suspension is linked to his decisions regarding a revenue matter during his tenure as the Surat district collector from June 23, 2021, to February 1, 2024. It is learned that an inquiry was launched into a 52-acre land parcel near the airport in the Dumas area of Surat. This government-owned land, valued at over Rs 5,000 crore, had 22 fraudulent names added to its revenue records during Oak’s tenure as Surat Collector. Oak allegedly signed off on these entries just a day before his transfer. Of the 22 names, only three are from Surat, while the remainder are from Mumbai.

Official sources reveal that the then-Collector had identified the land as government property, but Oak allegedly disregarded this report and included the tenants’ names in the records. The issue was escalated to the Prime Minister’s Office, which instructed the state to form a committee to investigate the matter.

The documents signed by Oak were sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) for verification. Based on the FSL reports, the government decided to suspend him.

The suspension order, issued on Monday, states that Oak will receive half of his salary and dearness allowance during the suspension. His headquarters during this period will be in Patan district, and he will not be allowed to leave Patan without prior approval from the ACS, GAD. Additionally, Oak must submit a monthly certificate to the GAD confirming he is not engaged in any other employment. DeshGujarat