Removal of AIIMS CVO routine thing: Harsh Vardhan

New Delhi: Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan Thursday said the removal of AIIMS chief vigilance officer (CVO) Sanjeev Chaturvedi was a "routine thing" and should not be turned into a "controversy".

"Sanjeev Chaturvedi was not at all eligible for the post he was holding at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS)," he said at the launch of a dental OPD at the institute.

"We were informed that without the approval of the Central Vigilance Commission, nobody can be assigned the post of a CVO anywhere... Taking cognizance we have removed him from the post.

"It is a routine thing, it should not be made a controversy," Harsh Vardhan added.

Viswas Mehata, a 1986 batch IAS officer of the Kerala cadre, was Wednesday appointed the new CVO of AIIMS for three months.

Chaturvedi, a Haryana cadre forest service officer of the 2002 batch, was earlier appointed CVO till June 2016.