The Manohar Lal Khattar Government in Haryana has taken two key decisions of identifying officers working on the sensitive posts for years and summoning investigating officers who deliberately delay the ongoing investigation against the employees and officers in various cases.

The decisions have been taken by the Chief Minister to rein in the corrupt and lazy officers and employees and separate orders have been issued by the Chief Secretary Vijai Vardhan to Administrative Secretaries, Heads of Departments, Managing Directors of Boards and Corporations among other senior officers to ensure compliance with the two decisions.

The Chief Minister has directed to collect the records of such officers and employees who have been sitting in the head offices and field offices of various departments, boards and corporations for a long time in posts which are sensitive in nature.

After the directions of the Chief Minister, the Chief Secretary has asked all the Administrative Secretaries, Heads of the Departments/Boards/Corporations of their respective departments to immediately prepare the list of such 'sensitive posts' i.e. primarily those posts which involve public dealing, decision making involving financial implications,  grant of licenses, making certificates, purchase of store-items etc. along with the names of officers/officials who have been posted on these sensitive posts continuously since more than three years and forward the same to the Chief Secretary by October 5.

“The work record of the officers who have been sitting on the same post for years will be searched, which will decide the future of their remaining tenure. Apart from this, investigating officers, who are shielding guilty officers, will be taken to task as well,” said an official spokesman.

The spokesman said that the year 2021 is being celebrated by the Haryana Government as the 'good governance result year'.

In the second decision, the Chief Minister has directed that those who deliberately delay the ongoing investigation against the employees and officers in various cases should be summoned. If the investigator is a retired officer, then the investigation will be taken from him and handed over to another officer. The Chief Minister has issued directions through the Chief Secretary to all the Administrative Secretaries for disposal of disciplinary proceedings under Rule 7 of the Haryana Civil Services (Punishment and Appeal) Rules, 2016.

“When it came to the notice of the Chief Minister that there is inordinate delay in submission of inquiry reports by the inquiry officers in many cases of disciplinary proceedings under Rule 7, he took immediate action to ensure timely disposal of disciplinary cases. Now, the State Government has decided to ensure timely disposal of disciplinary cases, particularly pertaining to the gazetted officers of Group A & B,” the spokesman said.

The State Government has decided that all Administrative Secretaries shall ensure that regular inquiries pending against gazetted officers are finalised before November 30. In such cases where an inquiry officer is unable to submit the inquiry report by November 30, the Administrative Secretaries concerned shall submit a report to the Chief Secretary by December 7 mentioning the causes of delay in the finalization of disciplinary proceedings.

However, if the Administrative Secretary/Punishing Authority is of the view that there has been an unjustified delay by the inquiry officer in concluding the inquiry, he may initiate/propose deterrent disciplinary action against the inquiry officer (if he is in service) and reassign the inquiry to some other inquiry officer (in case of inquiry officer being a retired government official).