CM directs AG to examine HC verdict setting aside appointment

Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh today directed the Advocate General (AG) to examine a high court judgement, setting aside the appointment of Suresh Kumar as the chief principal secretary to the chief minister and suggest legal remedies.

An official spokesperson here said the chief minister has also asked Advocate General Atul Nanda to analyse the court's order in detail and ascertain the grounds cited by the judges to quash Suresh Kumar's appointment.

The government would examine the judgement, said the spokesperson. Thereafter, further legal avenues would be explored to decide on the future course of action, he added.

"The Prime Minister's Office has a well-established tradition of over two decades of appointing retired civil servants as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister," said the spokesperson.
 

Similarly, Gujarat and Kerala governments have also appointed retired IAS officers as chief principal secretary to the chief minister, said the spokesperson.

Suresh Kumar, a 1983-batch IAS officer, was appointed to the key post on account of "his calibre and excellent track record in important roles", the spokesperson said, asserting that the chief minister's decision to name the officer as his chief principal secretary "was motivated by the need to have a qualified, experienced and trusted officer in this vital position".

The Punjab and Haryana High Court today set aside the appointment of Suresh Kumar as the chief principal secretary to the Punjab Chief Minister, saying the retired IAS officer was holding public office "without authority of law".

Justice Rajan Gupta of the high court while pronouncing the order said, "Having considered the entire conspectus of the matter, this court finds that respondent no. 5 (Suresh Kumar) is holding a 'public office' without authority of law and in clear violation of the constitutional scheme, particularly Article 166(3) and rules framed thereunder."

Kumar, considered close to Singh, was appointed after the Congress came to power in the state March year. The post of chief principal secretary was specially created for the retired IAS officer.