HYDERABAD: The installation of chief secretary Somesh Kumar as the new ex-officio president of Telangana IAS Officers’ Institution, popularly known as Telangana IAS Officers’ Association, has caused disquiet among a handful of senior IAS officers in the state.
The officers TOI spoke to questioned the installation saying the CS technically belongs to the Andhra Pradesh cadre. Other officers, however, saw nothing wrong in the move and said associations in other states including Haryana, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Odisha and Manipur are doing just fine with CS as head.
Vikas Raj, honorary secretary of Telangana IAS officers Institute told TOI that of the 37 officers present in the AGM, only two were not in consensus with chief secretary being made the ex-officio president. The remaining 35 members felt that the association needs to be taken to another level and the decorum of the institution would also be enhanced if the CS heads it.
“It is not Somesh Kumar, but it is the chief secretary who will head the body. There will be another officer as CS in future and he or she shall head the institution,” Vikas Raj said and added the retired officers are not part of this association and they have another association.
The annual general body meeting of the association convened on December 10 installed Somesh Kumar, a 1989 batch officer, as the new president. Senior IAS officer Suresh Chanda of 1985 batch, however, expressed displeasure, saying that the entire process of convening the meeting and installing the CS was against the rules of the association.
Retired IAS officer RV Chandravadan said: “Being the CS, Somesh Kumar is like a father figure to all the IAS officers.”
He further said: “But, there are apprehensions if there is any hidden agenda of the government to have more control over IAS officers, some of whom are not on the same page with the state government. Somesh Kumar should show maturity on such issues and give clarity.”
Expressing disquiet over the by-laws of the association being amended to install Somesh Kumar as the president, Suresh Chanda posted his comments in the IAS officers’ WhatsApp group. He said: “God save TS IAS fraternity. The annual general body meeting (AGM) has to be called with the consent of the president. As per the by-laws (before amendment on Dec 10), senior most IAS officer working in Hyderabad other than the CS should be the president of the institution.”
He said: “There is no provision of nomination or election for the post of president. So, after the retirement of senior IAS officer BP Acharya in October 2020, I (Suresh Chanda) became the president automatically. But, no one approached me for calling this AGM.”
Further, according to the AGM notice (dated Dec 3), the meeting would be chaired by the vice-president. “As per the by-laws, the AGM should be chaired by the president. Only in the absence of the president, the meeting should be chaired by the vice-president. I was present in the meeting but they did not recognise me as the president. Also, in the absence of the vice-president, the meeting was chaired by the secretary,” Suresh Chanda said.
A message was sent to Somesh Kumar by TOI for his reaction on the issue. A reply from him is awaited.