E-Paper
Move to promote HCS officers stoke controversy
The eight officers were arraigned as accused in a chargesheet filed in a court by the anti-corruption bureau
Haryana government’s recent move to push for the promotion of eight Haryana civil services (HCS) officers, arraigned as accused by the anti-corruption bureau (ACB), to the Indian administrative service (IAS) has stoked a controversy.
The government has sent an eligibility list containing names of the eight HCS officers of the 2002 batch to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). The Commission had earlier this year asked the state government to revisit the matter as a ACB report had indicated that the selection process for recruitment to the 2001 and 2004 HCS (executive branch) and Allied Services Examinations was manipulated and the recruitment process was completely vitiated.
In its fresh move, the state government, after taking legal advice from the advocate general, has sent the names of the eight HCS officers again to UPSC for considering them for promotion to IAS.
However, another vigilance report stating that these officers have been arraigned in a chargesheet filed by ACB in Hisar court for a case related to alleged malpractices in the recruitment process of 2001 HCS and Allied Services (executive branch) Examination was tagged along.
The eight HCS officers arraigned as accused by the ACB are Veena Hooda, Surender Singh-1, Jagdeep Dhanda, Sarita Malik, Kamlesh Bhadoo, Kuldhir Singh, Vatsal Vashisht and Jag Niwas.
Former minister writes to UPSC
Former Haryana minister, Karan Dalal who had challenged these selections in the high court also wrote to the UPSC on Tuesday seeking rejection of the government’s recommendations to promote the “tainted” HCS officers to IAS.
In a communication to the UPSC chairman, the Congress leader said the ACB, after conducting thorough investigation, found the selection of these HCS officers as tainted and chargesheeted them after finding them guilty of committing forgery,cheating and offences under Prevention of Corruption Act.
“They have been summoned by a Hisar court and are now facing a trial. Despite the summon, they have managed to get their names recommended for promotion to IAS. This clearly shows a collusion as the government has ignored the opinion of the legal remembrancer (LR) who denied the integrity certificate to the officers as they were selected using illegal means and are now accused in a criminal case. To counter the LRs opinion and to help the tainted candidates, the government procured the opinion from the office of advocate general and issued integrity certificates to them,’’ Dalal wrote.
UPSC had asked Haryana to revisit the matter
The UPSC, in a May communication, had asked the state government to revisit the matter and clarify the position after the latter had in December 2022 sent an eligibility list containing names of 11 HCS officers of the 2002 batch to the UPSC to prepare a select list for promotion of these HCS officers to the IAS of Haryana cadre.
The UPSC’s communication said that the report of anti-corruption bureau has indicated that the selection process for recruitment to the 2001 and 2004 HCS (executive branch) and allied services examinations was manipulated and the whole recruitment process was completely vitiated.
“It is observed from the Sept 8, 2022, report of the state vigilance bureau that some of the candidates whose names figure in this vigilance report also figured in the eligibility lists received from the state government for promotion to the IAS of Haryana cadre for select lists of 2020 and 2021. However, an April 7, 2023 communication from the state government has simply informed that the said report has no bearing on the proposals furnished by the state government for preparation of select lists of 2020 and 2021 for promotion to IAS of Haryana cadre,’’ the UPSC had written.
The UPSC had also asked the state government to intimate the status of a writ petition filed by former Haryana minister Karan Singh Dalal in the Punjab and Haryana high court challenging the 2001 HCS selections. The Commission also sought to know whether there was a stay order with respect to the stated case. “It may also be intimated whether there is any change in the status of disciplinary and criminal proceedings which were intimated earlier against the HCS officers mentioned in the eligibility list,’’ the UPSC had asked.
