Cabinet keeps all but one corrupt officials intact

Ejaz shifted to ARI, Peer gets H&ME, Gazanfar CT, Vineeta Excise

Ahmed Ali Fayyaz

SRINAGAR, Jun 23: Keeping all the corrupt officials and bureaucrats intact on their prize postings, with the exception of Commissioner-Secretary Revenue, state Cabinet today ordered a minor reshuffle of eight senior KAS and IAS officers. Status quo was also maintained in favour of certain IAS officers holding multiple prize portfolios and others burning their own hearts.

The Cabinet meeting, presided over by Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, was widely expected to order a major reshuffle in the state Police and civil administration as a number of officials and bureaucrats are facing serious charges of corruption and nepotism even as dozens more have overstayed on their places of posting.

Official sources said that after a discussion on proposed reshuffle of Deputy Commissioners and Heads of Departments, Cabinet decided to take up this issue in its next meeting. A number of HoDs, including Directors of several key departments and three DCs, would be shifted to new places of posting in that meeting. Sources said that Cabinet was likely to pick up two senior KAS/IAS officers as the new DCs in Srinagar and Budgam districts in the Valley.

Even as the Cabinet kept almost all the corrupt officials and bureaucrats intact, it removed Commissioner-Secretary Revenue, Sheikh Ejaz Iqbal, to the insignificant position of Commissioner-Secretary Administrative Reforms, Inspections and Trainings, relieving Commissioner-Secretary Social Welfare, Jeet Lal Gupta, of his additional charge.

Brother of key accused in the infamous Gulmarg Roshni Scam, Sheikh Mehboob Iqbal, has been left intact as Commissioner-Secretary Irrigation and Public Health Engineering but his younger brother, Sheikh Ejaz Iqbal, who is the key accused in another matter as former Managing Director of J&K State Financial Corporation (SFC), has been shifted to ARI and Trainings. Even as State Vigilance Organisation (SVO), reportedly under influence of two Cabinet Ministers, one each of Congress and National Conference, has adopted a “go slow” in Gulmarg Roshni Scam till Mehboob Iqbal’s retirement later this year, sleuths last month conducted a raid on offices of SFC and seized files pertaining to selling of government land on remarkably low rates when Ejaz was functioning as MD.

Like Mehboob, all the accused in Gulmarg Roshni Scam, have been placed on prize positions by Omar Abdullah government in the last two years. While one of them has been appointed as a member of J&K State Public Service Commission (PSC), another has been not only appointed as Deputy Commissioner of a key district in Jammu but also recommended for induction into the prestigious Indian Administrative Service without mandatory SVO clearance. Government has also conveniently shut its eyes to omissions and commissions of officers in PSC, Cultural Academy, SKUAST (J), Urban Local Bodies, Law Department and Rural Development Department.

Ghulam Ahmed Peer, Excise Commissioner, (holding additional charge of Commissioner, Commercial Taxes), has been transferred and posted as Commissioner-Secretary to Government, Health and Medical Education Department, relieving Principal Secretary to Government, Housing and Urban Development Department of the additional charge.

Secretary in the Agriculture Production Department, Gazanfer Hussain, has been transferred and posted as Commissioner Commercial Taxes, relieving Excise Commissioner of his/her additional charge. Smt. Vineeta Gupta, Additional Commissioner, Commercial Taxes (Administration), Jammu, has been transferred and appointed as Excise Commissioner, J&K.

Director Handicrafts, Mehraj-ud-Din Kenu, has been transferred and posted as Director Industries and Commerce, Kashmir.

Director, Industries and Commerce, Kashmir, Kachoo Isfandyar Khan, has been transferred and posted as Commissioner-Secretary to Government, Revenue Department.

Munshi Muzaffar Hussain, Additional District Development Commissioner, Budgam, has been transferred and posted as Director, Handicrafts, J&K.

Kiran Wattal, Joint Commissioner (Works), Jammu Municipal Corporation has been transferred and posted as Secretary, J&K Sports Council, on deputation basis relieving Director,Youth Services and Sports of his additional charge of the post. During his posting in the Sports Council, Wattal shall retain lien in his parent organization.

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