After Haryana was carved out of Punjab in 1969, it was decided that the Union Territory of Chandigarh would draw 60 per cent of its officers from Punjab and the remainder from Haryana. In addition, the Governor of Punjab would also be the UT Administrator. The post of Home Secretary would go to Haryana and that of Inspector General of Police, Chandigarh to Punjab.
Over the years, the Home Secretary’s post has become perhaps the most coveted. But this is hardly due to any challenge underlying the assignment. It has more to do with the booty hidden behind the scenes. Till a few years ago, Chandigarh was untouched by the real estate tide. In the recent past, private builders have built massive residential complexes around the city. During the last Home Secretary’s tenure, about 2,000 acres of land were given to private builder Parshvanath for construction of a residential complex under public-private partnership. This policy, still open, is the most lucrative aspect of the Home Secretary’s post and the reason why the UT has lately witnessed unseemly jostling for it.
When the term of the latest incumbent, Krishna Mohan (a 1977-batch IAS officer of the Haryana cadre), was about to end, he lobbied for an extension. Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda also wrote to the Home Ministry on his behalf. Annoyed at the lobbying, the Prime Minister ordered Mohan’s removal on March 31 even though no successor had been chosen. He was later appointed Financial Commissioner and Principal Secretary, Animal Husbandry and Dairy Development Department, Haryana.
The Maratha leader convinced Home Minister Patil to send the list to the PM with Khullar’s name heading it.
The selection of the next incumbent began and some intriguing twists and turns unfolded. Hooda forwarded the names of three IAS officers – Jyoti Arora (1987 batch), RK Khullar (1988) and Roshan Lal (1984), in order of preference – to the UT Administrator, Gen. SF Rodrigues. The latter forwarded the list to the Home Ministry without any change.
Arora’s husband, reportedly a Hooda favourite, is Managing Director of the Haryana State Industrial Development Corporation. Her brother, Sunil Arora, is Officer on Special Duty to the Chief Minister of Rajasthan. According to sources, the Aroras launched a bid to influence South Block. Khullar, the second candidate, was not going to lag behind. Seeing the game slipping out of his hand, he approached a powerful Minister and cricket lover from Maharashtra. The Maratha leader convinced Home Minister Shivraj Patil to send the list to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh with Khullar’s name heading it. News of this leaked to Rodrigues. Furious, he met the Prime Minister and apprised him of goings-on. The result was that the Prime Minister held up the file.
Meanwhile, a non-governmental organization in Ambala found out through the Right to Information (RTI) Act that no Dalit officer has ever been recommended for this post since the formation of Haryana. This piece of information led to a furore in the state owing to political considerations. In the face of further erosion of the Congress’ Dalit base and the lobbying by the babus, the Prime Minister rejected the original list and called for fresh names.
In a bid to appear pro-Dalit, Hooda this time round sent an all-Dalit list to the Home Ministry via the UT administration. The list includes, in order of preference, Anil Kumar (1988), RR Jowel (1986) and RP Chandra (1984). Another IAS officer, Ram Niwas (1985), later managed an entry into the list. These officers are individually facing either vigilance or court cases or have adverse entries in their conduct reports or are otherwise not up to the mark.
Each has highly-placed well-wishers – Ram Niwas is backed by the Governor, Jowel enjoys a rapport with four serving Secretaries at the Centre, Anil Kumar has the support of the Minister of State for Urban Development, and Chandra’s mother-in-law is Shakuntala Bhagwadia, former Haryana Minister and now MLA.
Now, if the government rejects this list it will be branded anti-Dalit. If it selects one of the names on the list, it will be violating official norms. It has well and truly painted itself into a corner.
