Jammu, Oct 16: The day his government completed two years in office, the Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Friday (October 16) found him on a solid wicket to reassert urgency of restoration of “statehood”, while flagging his disapproval and serious concern over alleged “unbecoming conduct” of a senior IAS officer towards a junior woman JKAS officer.
CM Omar did not mince words in saying – “Had J&K been a state, the IAS officer seen abusing a young JKAS officer would have been attached to the General Administration Department pending an inquiry into his conduct.”
Pointing out that as a Union Territory, the control over IAS officers rests with LokBhavan (and not with him), he has expected that the authorities concerned will ensure not to brush under the carpet – the abusive and threatening behaviour (of the IAS officer).
In the same breath, CM Omar, however, maintained that he had taken up the matter in the strongest possible terms with the Chief Secretary with the instructions to ensure the JKAS officer faced no retributive action.
“I’ve seen the video of the online government meeting that is circulating on social media. Prima facie the conduct of the senior officer was not in keeping with the standards expected of a senior IAS officer & the subsequent threats issued to a junior JKAS officer only make matters worse. I’ve taken this up in the strongest possible terms with the Chief Secretary. Unfortunately as a UT control over IAS officers rests with LokBhavan but as CM I’ve instructed the CS to ensure the JKAS officer faces no retributive action,” the Chief Minister posted on his personal ‘X’ handle.
Reference was to the viral video allegedly showing senior IAS officer Kumar Rajeev Ranjan, Administrative Secretary, Labour and Employment Department, J&K, verbally abusing, humiliating and threatening junior woman Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) officer BeenishWani, Assistant Director, during an official review meeting on October 14, 2026.
The incident stirred a storm across the political, administrative and social circles in J&K and even outside.
As a sequence to his earlier tweet, CM Omar, after some time again shared a post on his personal handle, reflecting upon the (consequential) scenario vis-à-vis brawl incident to bring the point home as to how the situation would have been different, had J&K been a state.
“Had J&K been a state, the IAS officer seen abusing a young JKAS officer would have been attached to the General Administration Department pending an inquiry into his conduct. As a UT we expect the authorities with control over the IAS officers to set the right example & ensure abusive, threatening behaviour is not brushed under the carpet,” he posted.
TRANSACTION OF GOVERNMENT BUSINESS PROCEDURE, POST AUGUST 5, 2019
Post August 5, 2019, the Chief Minister, in the existing UT set-up, exercises no control over IAS officers and that power totally rests with the LokBhavan (Lieutenant Governor). CM Omar-led government had revised the business rules yet the file was still pending with the central government awaiting approval for the past around one year. However, whether the revised rules (pending file) contained any tweaked rule which could deal with the current scenario, was not known.
The Third Schedule (Amended Entries) [Rule 31 (1)] (annexure ‘B’ to Government Order number 50-JK(GAD) of 2019 dated November 19, 2019 dealing with the transaction of government business procedure, only speaks about cases which “shall be submitted to the Chief Minister through the Chief Secretary.”
As per the annexure, these cases related to the “proposals for the dismissal, removal, reduction in the rank or compulsory retirement of an officer whose proposals for appointment require to be submitted to the Chief Minister including cases of disciplinary action against members of All India Services and KAS and disciplinary cases of such officers in respect of which action is proposed to be taken by the departments contrary to the advice of the Anti Corruption Commission and/or the Public Service Commission.” (serial number 3).
The cases related to the “proposals involving the appointment, resignation, dismissal, removal or suspension of the Chairman, Members or officers of the status of Secretary, Additional Secretary or Joint Secretary of the Public Service Commission” (serial number 36) and “any other matter which the Chief Minister may from time to time, by general or special orders specify.” (Serial number 23).
Besides, in a list of 51, the cases involving “formulation of statutory rules”; “proposals for the making or amending of rules regulating the recruitment and conditions of service of the members of State services including of those persons appointed to the Secretariat staff of legislatures and officers and servants of High Court” and “grant of permission to take employment in commercial, industrial or other private concerns to all officers whose appointment is made with the approval of the Chief Minister or the cabinet” shall also be submitted to the CM through the Chief Secretary (CS).
About The Author
