The Mayawati governments total disregard for the decisions of the UP IAS Association has compelled the body to plan a retalilation.
We do not want to start a battle with her so soon after the installation of the government, sais an office bearer of the Association. We dont want to create an impression that we always want to raise some issue with the government.
But the problem is that we have been left with no escape route, he said. We have been hit directly. By appointing AP Singh to the important post of agricultural production commissioner, she has almost thrown a challenge at us. We have no option. Singh should have been punished since he got the highest number of votes in the identification of the three most corrupt officers.
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At the moment the Association is trying to send its message across to the Chief Minister through informal channels, that AP Singh has to be removed. But the Association knows that nothing will happen, since they and many others suspect that lot of wheeling-dealing is involved in the appointment. But nevertheless, for the record, they are making their efforts to send the message across to the Mayawati: either change or face the consequences. They do not want the latter to tell them that if they had approached her earlier she would done something. Therefore, all avenues are being utilised to send the message across before a formal delegation meets her.
Another issue which has irked the Association is the promotion policy. All the officers of 1972 batch have been promted to the post of principal secretary of all officers of the 1981 batch to secretary. This was never demanded by the Association, and has been done to win over a large number of officials. The Association suspects that these steps have been taken to spite the the body, since it had demanded that the post of the principal secretary be abolished. For this papers had already been moved and it only required the signature of the Chief Minister.
Instead the chief Minister has chosen to do the contrary. Well planned moves are on to weaken the authority which the Association has acquired.
There is deep disappointment with Mayawati over the way she has managed things since the beginning of her second innings. This is true especially of the scheduled caste officers, who are devoted to her and have been her supporters for a long time.
Although all the important posts have gone to the SC officers, even within them a schism has appeared. There is what can loosely called groups of officers of Punjab-Haryana origin and those of UP origin. The latter feels that it is the former are calling the shots and have garnered all the important posts. They further feel that Kanshi Ram, Mayawati and a host of officers who surround them are all from outside and have no stake in the state. Rumblings are getting louder.
Two change which has particularly been noticed is the shifting of Lakshmi Chand to secretary, revenue and Babu Ram taking over from him as principal secretary, industry.
The latter has only sixteen months of service left. What was the need to break the continuity in this crucial post, since Lakshmi Chand, the incumbent, has another six years of service? The new appointment has been greeted by a great deal of dismay. Insiders point out that all these appointments involve wheeling-dealing. They have been given with a prior pecuniary understanding.
There are many posts which have not been touched. They mostly relate to industry, finance or land development. The posts are occupied by stalwarts, invariably upper castes, who know the system too well and know the technology through which they can preserve themselves in these lucrative posts.
A bureaucrat asserts,you all are wrong when you talk about the caste factors. It is not the caste which is really material. It is in fact the cash nexus which is the arbiter of everything. It is this which is supreme. There, in fact, are only two castes that of corrupt and honest. There is none other.
With most people now subscribing to this view, the states honey moon with the Mayawati government is over. Among the groups which is going to put up a first resistance is the IAS Association. Its executive committee is going to meet shortly to take stock of the prevailing situation and plan an action. This will signal a formal renewal of hostilities, if Mayawati does not yield to reason.