The Bihar government on Thursday issued a show-cause notice to over a dozen IAS officers and District Magistrates. The notice asked them under whose permission they had left the headquarters to participate in a meeting on February 26, and formed a human chain in the prohibited zone outside Raj Bhavan.
The IAS officers have been asked to respond to the notice in three days.
Protesting against the arrest of Bihar Staff Selection Commission (BSSC) chairman and senior IAS officer Sudhir Kumar in connection with the question paper leak scam, the State IAS association members held an emergency meeting on February 26. They formed a human chain outside Raj Bhavan when a delegation went to meet Governor Ram Nath Kovind.
Over 50 IAS officers, including Secretaries and District Magistrates, had participated in the meeting and the human chain.
They also met CM Nitish Kumar and Speaker Vijay Kumar Chaudhury to apprise them of the issue.
According to them, “Sudhir Kumar was one among the upright and honest IAS officers of the State”. RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav too had called Sudhir Kumar an “honest IAS officer”.
Black ribbons
The IAS officers later passed a resolution saying they would not take any call even from the CM “unless it [an order] comes in writing”. They wore black ribbons to register their protest.
However, the CM said he was yet to receive any formal representation. “Let it come, and I’ll take a decision which will prove to be a milestone,” Mr. Kumar told journalists.
