Out of favour?

Another babu bites the dust. Gujarat’s officialdom is undergoing a churning. But since the churning is taking place against the backdrop of two senior Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officers facing serious corruption charges, there is heightened interest in the goings-on in Modi-pradesh.

In the most recent episode, the state government has dismissed another senior babu D.K. Rao, who still had five years to go in the service. After chargesheets against babus Pradeep Sharma and Hareet Shukla on corruption charges, Rao’s sacking is perhaps the most high-profile development in the Gujarat administration.
Babu observers too are mystified since Rao was believed to be close to chief minister Narendra Modi. The 1980 batch IAS officer has held several important positions in the state government, including overseeing the golden jubilee celebrations of the state. Apparently, it was a two-decade-old case of alleged corruption when Rao was with the Vishakhapatnam Port Trust which has led to Rao’s sudden and mysterious fall from grace. The incident however has left many babus wondering why the government was so keen to act against Rao when reportedly there are many other senior babus who have inquiries pending against them. The government’s lips, expectedly, are sealed. But eventually it is hoped that more details will trickle out.

Getting tougher
Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar may have led the way by confiscating properties of corrupt babus in the state. Noting his success, the Centre too may follow suit if the proposal, mooted by activists and currently being debated by the drafting committee of the proposed Lokpal Bill, is accepted. The general thinking is that even the threat of a jail sentence has failed to curb corruption and only the threat of seeing their personal property and assets being seized by the authorities may act as a deterrent.
But, even while that debate rages, there the government has been turning the screws on corrupt babus. The department of personnel and training, according to sources, has recently revealed the names of 487 officials who did not submit the mandatory details of their immovable assets to the authorities.
These include several senior officials including some joint secretaries and directors. Outing the defiant defaulters is certainly one way to discipline babus. And as the proposed Lokpal Bill takes shape, there are bound to be some anxious faces among those who’ve been feeding at the trough.