J&K govt wants to retire 5 IAS officers, accused of graft

Mukhtar Ahmad in Srinagar

The state government in Jammu and Kashmir has sought the federal home ministry's permission for the forcible retirement of five senior IAS officers of the J&K cadre who are believed to have indulged in corruption and built up assets disproportionate to their known sources of income.

Informed sources reveal that another list, of over one hundred officials in the state administration, are also liable to face action on similar charges.

The entire exercise is being monitored by Chief Minister Dr Farooq Abdullah himself. And the impending punitive action has already begun sending shock waves through the various levels of the administrative and police cadres.

The problem first came to light when details of the the Rs 30 million Kishen Ganga Hydroelectric Project scam was first revealed. Vigilance officers indicate that the amount has been misappropriated by the concerned engineers in its entirety, while on the books it is shown as having been expended on project works that do not exist.

These actions must be viewed in light of the fact that Chief Minister Abdullah has made the eradication of corruption one of his main electoral planks. Immediately after assuming office, the Abdullah government ordered raids into the homes and offices of senior engineers, during which unaccounted gold and cash was recovered. The ongoing investigations are merely part of the clean-up campaign the state administration has launched, and is pursuing with vigour.