The policy freeze and dithering which have come to symbolize UPA-II have had an adverse impact on India’s diplomatic efforts. Key ambassadorial positions have been lying vacant while the Prime Minister (who approves the appointments along with the external affairs minister and the foreign secretary) has busy stamping out political bush fires. One factor that has hampered appointments to crucial ambassadorial positions is that these often involve candidates with political backgrounds. The starkest example of this is the post of high commissioner to UK which has been not been filled since Nalin Surie retired in August 2011. The appointment of a new high commissioner to Bangladesh has been held back similarly, say sources. The position was last held by Rajeet Mitter who retired October last year. But MEA sources say that foreign secretary Ranjan Mathai is likely to make some announcements for ambassadors soon. Still, with many IFS officers of the 1975 and 1976 batches on the verge of retirement, the MEA will need to move fast on filling the vacuum.
Seniority blues
Transfers and postings of senior IPS officers often get mired in controversy. One such controversy in West Bengal recently has perhaps made the state government mull reconstituting the Police Establishment Board (PEB) in the state, which is headed by the state police chief DGP N. Mukherjee. The controversy arose when Nazrul Islam, a 1981 batch IPS officer, who has the rank of an additional director general (ADG) questioned the authority of the board to decide his posting since some members of the board were junior to him in the hierarchy. According to sources, PEB was constituted after a Supreme Court directive, which stipulated that besides the DGP, the board should have another four senior officers as members. but to avert future issues of “seniority”, the government proposes that for appointments upto the ADG rank, the board should comprise members who have the DG rank.
CBI backs up whistleblower
Whistleblowers among the tribesmen (yes, that rare breed still exists) rarely find their careers sailing smoothly, even in these enlightened days where the cry for accountability and transparency is shaking babu bastions. Ask Sanjiv Chaturvedi, a lowly Indian Forest Officer in Haryana, who clearly rubbed the powers that be the wrong way during his five year tenure in the state forest department. For exposing irregularities and violations of the Wildlife Act, the forest babu suffered 12 transfers, several chargesheets, FIRs and inquiries! Further, Chaturvedi’s request for Central deputation was repeatedly obstructed by the Haryana government. Fortunately for him, the Centre empanelled his name, nevertheless. And recently, even the CBI has said it believes that the forest scam Chaturvedi exposed “is a fit case to investigate independently”. This should bring some joy to the whistleblower.
