File photo of IAS officer Durga Shakti Nagpal
For the first time since young civil servant Durga Shakti Nagpal was suspended by the Uttar Pradesh Government for allegedly taking on the sand mining mafia, three central services - the Indian Administrative Service (IAS), the Indian Police Service (IPS) and the Indian Forest Service (IFS) - have come together and have sought the changes in the rules that empower state governments to suspend public servants.
The coming together of the three services on the issue of how officers can be suspended is significant. It not only means more weight behind the demand seeking changes in rules but also indicates that central services are coalescing together and are increasingly becoming impatient with arbitrary suspensions and transfers.
A delegation with a representative from each of the three services met SK Sarkar, Secretary of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), on Monday evening and sought more checks in the rules that allow state governments to suspend officers. "We want powers of the state governments to be curbed," said secretary of the IAS officers Sanjay R Bhoosreddy. The DoPT is the custodian of rules that governs the bureaucracy and the central services.
The three services had sought that instead of suspending an officer at first go, rules should be amended making it mandatory for the State Administrations to issue a show cause notice, seek explanation from the officer concerned. Moreover, the associations have demanded, that the suspension will have to be cleared by the Centre.
"The current powers with the state government are being misused. We have no objection to action being initiated against corrupt officers, rules should be amended to so that honest officers are protected," Mr Bhoosreddy and his counterpart representing the Indian Police Service, Pankaj Kumar Singh, said.
Ms Nagpal was suspended last month for ordering the demolition of a mosque being built illegally on government land in Greater Noida. Sources say she claimed innocence in her reply to a chargesheet by the Akhilesh Yadav government that accused her of "poor administrative acumen and lack of foresight" for a decision that could cause communal tension in the holy month of Ramzan. The UP government has to now decide whether to conduct an enquiry against her or to revoke her suspension.
In a related development, Minister of State for Personnel and Training, V Narayansamy said that Centre was unable to intervene in the case of Ms Nagpal under the current laws. "Till the officer concerned writes to us seeking challenging the UP Governments order suspending her we cannot intervene," Mr Narayansamy said. He also said that the Centre has received a report from UP explaining its order suspending Ms Nagpal.