This piece was first published on The India Cable – a premium newsletter from The Wire & Galileo Ideas – and has been updated and republished here. To subscribe to The India Cable, click here.
The notice initiating departmental proceedings against Alapan Bandyopadhyay under the All India Services (Discipline and Appeal) Rules and initiation of proceedings under Rule 6 of the pension rules is yet another measure by the central government of showing its displeasure and disapproval of the conduct of the former West Bengal chief secretary.
Under the pension rules, the central government can withhold part or all of his pension. The punishment is meted out to officials found, in a departmental or judicial proceeding, guilty of causing pecuniary loss, or even grave misconduct. With the issuance of the chargesheet, such proceedings have been initiated.
Action by the central government can be taken only after consultation with the Union Public Service Commission. While issuance of the chargesheet is within the competence of the central government, the action is rather unusual and prima facie seems an extreme reaction to an issue which had its roots in the way our constitution provides for managing the all-India services. I recall two instances where pension was stopped. In one case, the officer had joined Star TV and in the other, was working in the Emirates. But both these cases concerned officers with huge alternate employment without permission from the government.
All India Service officers work under the state government, unless they are on deputation to the Centre, and follow the orders of the chief minister. When on deputation, they follow the orders of the central minister concerned, or of the PM. They must tender their advice freely and fairly, but the final decision is that of a political master.
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Alapan Bandyopadhyay was working with the state government. Mamta Banerjee, chief minister of West Bengal, did not want to stay back for the PM’s meeting due to political problems. It would have been appropriate if she had asked Bandyopadhyay to attend the meeting. In a federal set-up, this would have been procedurally appropriate. But she decided otherwise. It is therefore clearly incorrect to charge the former chief secretary for following the directions of the chief minister.
In a federal setup, there are often different parties in office at the Centre and state. If officers working in the state started following the dictates of the Centre, while the chief minister issued different orders, there would be utter chaos. The All India Services have been provided protection under the constitution. While the prime minister guides all policies under the central government, the chief minister does so in the state, and Centre-state relations have defined areas. The services are guided by a separate constitutional provision. It does not seem fair to charge officers when the problem lies at a political level.
West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee addresses a press conference at Nabanna in Howrah district. Photo: PTI
I cannot recall any precedent to this situation. Possibly because the same party was in office at the Centre and the state, or if they were different, the political chasm between them was not so deep. The nearest case is that of Jayalalithaa, chief minister of Tamil Nadu, and other senior officers walking out of the meeting of the National Development Council in 2012, protesting that chief ministers were not allowed to speak.
It is indeed unfortunate that an officer has become collateral damage to a political face-off. IAS officers look to the central government for protection and support, whether they are in a state or at the Centre. If the current process initiated by the Centre is not brought to an early conclusion consistent with the constitutional spirit, the services would be weakened. Bandopadhyay is reputed to be an upright man. If after working for more than three decades with the government, officers are denied pension, what message is sent to all the honest officers who depend on it? The Centre and the states must ponder.
BK Chaturvedi is former cabinet secretary and former member of the Planning Commission.
This piece was first published on The India Cable – a premium newsletter from The Wire & Galileo Ideas – and has been updated and republished here.
To subscribe to The India Cable, click here.
