Associations oppose I-T dept’s move to revert 150 staffers

Nagpur: Despite Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to establishments not to retrench employees or deduct their salary, the Income Tax Department’s office in the city has allegedly reversed promotions of as many as 150 employees belonging to backward categories.
According to aggrieved employees, the action was carried out on April 22 when the lockdown was on citing a judgment of Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), Mumbai bench, of November 30, 2018. Accordingly, the reservation in promotions were denied to staffers.
Protesting the move, the All India Income Tax SC/ST Employees’ Welfare Association’s city unit has written to the PM requesting him to reverse the order of demotion. “The order was implemented by the I-T chief commissioner without following guidelines of the Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) and Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT). It was done intentionally. Since the both commissioner and central government were the respondents, it was their prime duty to save the employees from demotion,” secretary Kiran Jadhav told TOI.
Dr Ambedkar Employees Association has also written to the PM stating that the I-T Department should have challenged the order in high court. “The I-T Department conducted a review meeting on March 18 and 19 and issued reversion order without providing any notice to the SC/ST employees. It is in gross violation of principle of natural justice and against the government’s policy on reservation,” president Sanjay Thul said.
He demanded immediate action against those who failed to protect the rights of backward category employees. “All these staffers are working with the department since over five years and their salaries are deducted. The inspector is reverted to tax assistant after demotion and so on,” Thul said.