India News | Perform Public Duties Diligently: HC Tells Govt Officials
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. Government officials are expected to perform their duties in the interest of the public at large as any lapse would result in people losing faith in their functioning, the Madras High Court has observed.
Chennai, Nov 2 (PTI) Government officials are expected to perform their duties in the interest of the public at large as any lapse would result in people losing faith in their functioning, the Madras High Court has observed.
Justice S M Subramaniam made the observation on October 28 while disposing of a writ petition from M Gagan Bothra of Sowcarpet, seeking appropriate action against IAS officer V Mohanraj, the then secretary of the Transport department.
Also Read | Kantara: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman Watches Rishab Shetty's Blockbuster Hit.
According to Gagan, the bureaucrat had borrowed Rs 10 lakh from his father Mukanchand Bothra in 2016. In return, Mohanraj issued a cheque, which bounced later. He lodged a complaint with the then Chief Secretary to take appropriate action against Mohanraj.
As there was no action, he preferred the present petition. During the pendency of the matter, Mukanchand died and his son -- Gagan -- pursued the matter. He argued the case as a party-in-person before the judge.
When the matter came up on October 28, the Additional Advocate General informed the judge that a case was registered on the 2016 complaint on October 27 this year and it was being probed.
An irked judge observed that there is a force in the contention of Gagan that the action was not taken in time. It is for the (then) Chief Secretary to look into the facts and circumstances and if any lapses committed by the authorities, who were holding positions in the government at that point of time are responsible, then all appropriate actions are to be taken.
The public authorities are expected to perform their duties diligently and in the interest of the public at large.
The delay caused at the instance of the authorities are also to be looked into and such unnecessary and enormous delay in initiating an action is to be avoided in future.
The Chief Secretary has to initiate all appropriate action to ensure that the actions in these kinds of complaints against the public authorities are addressed within a reasonable time, the judge said.
However, since a criminal case has already been registered, the judge said that Gagan is at liberty to pursue the same for the purpose of establishing the complaint given by his father.
(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)