Under investigation: HPCL dir. HR
Hindustan Petroleum HR director Kasargod Shetty faces an oil ministry investigation into allegations of misconduct.
One of which is that his appointment as HPCL director HR in May 2023 was fraudulent. On December 9 (2024), deputy director (wages) Rajesh Puri in the Department of Public Enterprises (DPE) wrote to oil secretary Pankaj Jain: "Request for investigation into the fraudulent appointment and misconduct of KS Shetty, director (HR), HPCL.' Puri said he is "directed to forward herewith a copy of complaint dated October 10, 2024 (in original) of Uday Shankar on the subject cited above" to the oil ministry.
Shetty, who was appointed HR director in May 2023, faces allegations he claimed medical expenses from HPCL for his parents even though their income was above the limit set by the government. Shankar, a former working president of HPCL’s officers’ association, alleged that Shetty’s "false declarations’ on medical expenses for his parents were suppressed by the vigilance department, which enabled him to be appointed HR director.
Shankar accused Shetty's parents of earning over the Rs3300 ($40) monthly limit, including pension and the interest on the lumpsum amount received from Coromandel Fertilisers, which employed his father. Shankar first made these allegations in February 2024 in letters to Narendra Modi, oil minister Hardeep Puri and the CBI, seeking a detailed independent inquiry.
When contacted an HPCL spokesperson responded by text: "There is nothing in that; an old issue raked up since long (sic) without any merits."