Never say never

Indian Administrative Service officer Ashok Khemka may be feted by the media for raising objections to a Robert Vadra-DLF deal, but bureaucrats themselves don’t think much of this heroism. The general impression among civil servants on Raisina Hill is that Khemka’s record of 43 transfers in 21 years shows that he may be honest and righteous, but that’s not good enough for a bureaucrat. The key to surviving without compromising on integrity, they say, is to never say “no”. “We have to be politically correct always. Don’t say no when your boss asks you to do something, but don’t do it either. Find ways to avoid doing something that’s not right, without giving him an impression that you are against it,” said an official.