Karnataka   

Karnataka Chief Secretary’s appointment challenged

BANGALORE: The appointment of Sudhakar Rao as Chief Secretary superseding four senior IAS officers has since been challenged in the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) by Dilip Rau, Chairman of the Bangalore Development Authority and Administrator of the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike. The tribunal is expected to hear the case on Friday. In his petition, Mr. Dilip Rau has sought the quashing of the February 6 order of the State Government appointing his junior, Mr. Sudhakar Rao, as Chief Secretary.

He has called the Government Order “illegal, arbitrary, capricious and discriminatory”. He has requested the tribunal to pass an interim order staying the appointment.

Additional Chief Secretary Neerja Rajkumar, who has been shifted out of the State Secretariat and has been appointed Chairperson, Karnataka Urban Infrastructure Development and Finance Corporation, is also expected to move the tribunal against Mr. Rao’s appointment.

The former Chief Secretary, P.B. Mahishi, who is left with 14 months of service, is reportedly also considering a similar move.

Mr. Rao took charge as the new Chief Secretary on Thursday from Mr. Mahishi who has been appointed Chairman of the Karnataka Power Corporation Limited. None of the IAS officers attended the brief programme held in the chambers of the Chief Secretary to witness the handing over of charge although a few of them later turned up to greet the new Chief Secretary.

The handing-over programme ended in five minutes and the top brass of the bureaucracy chose to stay away apparently since the changes have given room for a controversy.

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