India News | Giving Extension to Top Bureaucrat Right of Govt, Opine Former Chief Secretaries of Delhi
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. The government has a "right" to give extension to senior civil servants nearing retirement depending on administrative exigencies and urgent situations, some former Delhi chief secretaries said Wednesday.
New Delhi, Nov 29 (PTI) The government has a "right" to give extension to senior civil servants nearing retirement depending on administrative exigencies and urgent situations, some former Delhi chief secretaries said Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court upheld the Centre's decision to extend the tenure of Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar by six months, just a day ahead of his superannuation on November 30.
The Centre is "well within its right" to give extension to senior bureaucrats, said former Delhi chief secretary KK Sharma.
"A few senior civil servants have been given extension in the past depending on administrative needs. The government can take a call in this regard," Sharma said.
Upholding the Centre's decision to extend Kumar's tenure, the apex court stated that the move "cannot be construed to be violative of law."
The AAP government in Delhi had filed a plea in the court against any move by the Centre to appoint, without any consultation with it, the new chief secretary or extend the tenure of the incumbent top bureaucrat .
Former Delhi chief secretary PK Tripathi said extension of service is allowed by the rules and it is a "right" of the government.
"Different state governments have given extension to senior retiring bureaucrats in the past. Its debatable whether it should or should not be done but technically there is no fault if the government wants to give extension to some officer approaching superannuation," Tripathi said.
Another former Delhi chief secretary Ramesh Negi said there was nothing new in extension being given to top bureaucrats by the governments.
"Both at the Centre as well as in the states, extensions were given in the past to top officers approaching retirement. It's a right of the government and there is nothing wrong in it," Negi said.
Earlier, in 2014, D M Sapolia was brought back as Chief Secretary of Delhi shortly after he was removed from the post by the newly formed government of Aam Aadmi Party.
Sources in bureaucracy said giving extension to retiring top bureaucrats was "rather routine" in the states but it was "rare" in case of Union Territory governments.
"Many a time there are political exigencies that come into play. Extension can be an exception like in cases of administrative urgency or proprietary presenting special circumstances like in times of disaster or some coronavirus-like calamity, but not a rule" said a bureaucrat seeking anonymity.
Naresh Kumar, a 1987-batch IAS office, took charge of Delhi chief secretary in April 2022. He has been at loggerheads with the ruling AAP over a host of issues.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)