A senior forest officer in Madhya Pradesh has written to the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests alleging that Balaghat MLA Anubha Munjare tried to extort money and threatened to remove her from her job.
In a letter addressed to the head of the Forest Force, Divisional Forest Officer (North Balaghat Division), Neha Srivastava detailed an incident on August 16 at the Forest Rest House in Balaghat, where she claimed the legislator demanded illicit monetary gratification.
“At approximately 4PM, I was summoned to meet her at the FRH (Forest Rest House). Upon my arrival, in the presence of her personal staff, security personnel, and another woman, she made a direct demand for an illicit monetary gratification of ‘2-3 peti’,” Srivastava wrote.
The officer stated that when she declined, the MLA “resorted to intemperate and derogatory language directed not only at me but also at my family, and explicitly threatened that she would ‘take care of me’ and ensure my removal from the district.”
Forest Department Secretary Atul Kumar Mishra on Wednesday ordered an enquiry into the incident.
The MLA has not yet responded to the allegations when contacted by The Indian Express.
According to the letter, Munjare had further warned that “none of us would be allowed to continue in our postings” and threatened to launch a hunger strike and protest in Bhopal to press her demands.
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The letter also said Munjare has “established a reputation for exerting pressure on officers through aggressive posturing, orchestrated media campaigns, and unfounded allegations raised in public forums, including the Vidhan Sabha.”
Srivastava said she attended the meeting believing it would concern official matters, as it was held at a Forest Rest House. “Declining such an invitation outright could easily be misconstrued as arrogance or non-cooperation with a public representative,” she explained.
The DFO further alleged that the abusive remarks continued outside in the verandah of the rest house, in front of the departmental staff. “During this episode, she also hurled abusive and derogatory language at all IFS officers of Balaghat, making sweeping and defamatory statements against the service as a whole,” the letter stated.
The MLA’s personal assistant, who identified himself as her nephew, also allegedly misbehaved. “When I requested that he maintain decorum, he asserted that he was not merely her PA but also her nephew,” Srivastava noted.
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Calling the incident “a grave attempt at intimidation, coercion, and obstruction of lawful official functioning”, the DFO requested “appropriate intervention to safeguard the dignity of service, ensure my personal security, and prevent further impediment to departmental responsibilities.”
