Spare The Bureaucrats In Political Slugfests
By A Special Correspondent
First publised on 2021-06-01 12:24:19
About the Author
Before forming any opinion on la affaire Alapan Bandhopadhyay (the West Bengal chief secretary who is in the eye of a political storm) one needs to remember that Bandopadhyay was due to retire on 31st May and had been given a three month extension by the Centre just a few days before his retirement. One also needs to keep in mind that the extension must have been the result of a consultative process between the Centre and the state when the state must have asked for his services to be extended in view of the fact that the second wave of Covid-19 was raging and Bandopadhyay had been doing a good job in controlling the same in West Bengal. The Centre must have given him an extension on the request of the state.
Then, what changed in just a couple of days for the Centre to call him for Central deputation without consulting the state? Is it "political vendetta", as alleged by the state chief minister? Or is it disciplinary action against Bandopadhyay for not attending the meeting called by the Prime Minister when he visited West Bengal to get a first hand report on the situation arising out of the havoc caused by Cyclone Yaas? It needs to be remembered that an IAS officer, although working for the state government, is obliged to report also to the Prime Minister. By choosing to accompany the state chief minister (after she claimed to have taken the leave of the PM) and not staying back for a meeting with the PM, did Alapan Bandopadhyay commit a mistake that warranted the 'disciplinary' action? Bandopadhyay, meanwhile, chose not to report to the Centre and took superannuation. He was promptly appointed chief adviser to Mamata Banerjee for a period of three years.
While the controversy will rage on and people will take sides citing rules and propriety, the affair does just one thing - weakens an already weak bureaucracy. What do they do in situations such as the one that arose in West Bengal? It also shows the Centre in a bad light mainly because of the ongoing political fight between the PM and the TMC supremo. Was action against Bandopadhyay necessary, especially after the state chief minister claimed to have taken permission from the Prime Minister to leave with the chief secretary? If no permission was granted by the Prime Minister, he should say so in public. Bureaucrats must not be made pawns in the game of one-upmanship being played by politicians.
