Call to extend the service of the DGP : The other side of the story
- Sangai Express Editorial :: November 16 , 2013 -

Brings to mind the recent ruling or observation of the Supreme Court that there should be fixed tenures of Government officials, to enable them to execute their plans and agenda. Makes sense.

The Sangai Express is not in any way pitching in and backing the calls raised by some eminent citizens of the land that the tenure of the present DGP Mr MK Das needs to be extended in the face of the fact that he will be at the helm of affairs for only three months but there is some merit in the call to give him a certain period of service extension.

There is not so much that a man at the top can make a difference in three months.

Yet at the same time, Mr Das is trying to make a difference within his short tenure of three months and if the endeavour to ring in some changes has to have any meaningful impact in the long run, then it makes perfect sense to extend his tenure by some time.

How well the political establishment or the Government will take the suggestions remains to be seen but the fact that suggestions have been raised to extend his service tenure gains credence in the face of the recent observation made by the apex Court of the country.

The Sangai Express has already described the present DGP as soft spoken, but not weak, a personal trait which says that being tough or strong need not necessarily mean using one's lung power at its crudest form.

In other words, tough and strong but shorn of all the arrogance that is generally associated with the men in uniform, especially the Khaki clad personnel.

This is about the person Mr MK Das as the DGP, but at the other end of the spectrum is also the question over the wisdom of citizens urging the Government to extend the service of an official, that too an official of the rank of the DGP.

If such a trend catches on, will it augur well for the State as a whole is a question that is worth pondering over.

For remember a long tenure need not necessarily translate into effective implementation of policies and programmes but could lead to the emergence of an entrenched coterie, promoting a sort of a groupism and a culture of chamchagiri where those deemed to be close to the power centre or the man at the top get the prime parts or postings at the cost of merit.

Public servants, not private servants. This is not The Sangai Express which said this but Mr Subramanian, a former Cabinet Secretary.

In one single sentence, the former bureaucrat, who managed to climb the highest rung in his professional career summed up the level of political interference in the working of its officials.

A crude way of saying "I am the boss."

Take the case of a middle level IAS officer, Ashok Khemka who has been transferred a record 45 times in Haryana and things cannot get more clear than this.

This may sound like a digression, but a needed digression to come face to face with the fact that Manipur too is not an exception.

As things stand today there are officials who have been penalised for years on one pretext or the other, a sure shot indication that officials need to be in the good books of their political bosses.

Such a trend cannot be for the good of the land and the people as a whole.

It is against the overall scenario that is happening that the call to extend the service of the DGP should be seen.

Which way the wind will blow remains to be seen, but the important point to be kept in mind is whether the service of Mr Das is extended or a new incumbent comes in, it should be on the premise that they are occupying the seat to serve the interest of the land and not the interest of their political bosses and their hangers on.

This may sound too idealistic and not practical, but this point needs to be repeated time and again.