In an unprecedented development, scores of Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers have applied for a half-day leave on Monday in protest against what they have termed ‘disturbing developments that affect the morale of the civil service, on account of the abuse of power on the part of the Vigilance Director and Anti-Corruption Bureau.’
The officers sent in their leave requests after a meeting of several IAS officers on Saturday evening in the wake of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau(VACB) implicating Additional Chief Secretary (Industries) Paul Antony as the third accused in a case relating to the appointment of a relative of former Industries Minister E.P. Jayarajan as Managing Director of the public sector Kerala State Industrial Enterprises (KSIE) Limited.
The officers are upset that the VACB is targeting IAS officers, especially giving signs that moves are afoot to implicate officers such as Revenue Secretary P.H. Kurien, Health Secretary Rajeev Sadanandan and even Chief Secretary S.M. Vijayanand in Vigilance cases.
A senior officer told The Hindu on Saturday that the morale of the officers was so low that the government machinery was faced with a major crisis. “There will have to be an urgent intervention by the political leadership to salvage the situation,” the officer said.
“We are requesting our colleagues of the Kerala IAS to avail one day’s casual leave on January 9, 2017, to express our sadness, frustration, and professional dissatisfaction and to show our solidarity with our aggrieved colleagues, in allowing the present Vigilance Director to continue abusing his powers. While doing so, we request all officers who are attending to emergency duties of law and order or other critical duties, particularly in the posts of District Collector and Sub Collectors, to be in their offices and attend to their work, while expressing their solidarity with this sentiment by availing one day’s casual leave,” a note released to the media by the IAS officers after a meeting.
The officers pointed out that Mr. Antony had only ‘implemented the written instructions of Minister, in accordance with Circular No. 25208/D2/09/id DATED 15.2.2010 UNDER THE Rules of Business that confers sole powers of such appointments in the Industries Department to the Minister. We are unable to understand how obeying the written instructions of a Minister, which is not in violation of any Act or Statute, can be deemed illegal and how such an officer can be implicated in a criminal case,” the officers said.
The IAS officers are of the view that the Vigilance Director’s action against Mr. Antony was ‘motivated in vindictive retaliation,’ primarily due to the fact that he took the view that the arrest of K. Padmakumar, former Managing Director, Malabar Cements Limited, was in gross violation of all legal norms and principles of natural justice. They have also raised the question why the government has not taken any action against the Vigilance Director despite the existence of several files ‘which establish clearly’ that the Vigilance Director while working as Director of Ports has caused the loss of an amount approximately Rs.35-50 crore to the government.
“We sadly observe that ironically, this amount is much more than the value reported in the media on any case that is currently under investigation of the Vigilance Department after the present Vigilance has taken charge,” they said.
