140 IAS officers yet to file immovable property returns

THE CHIEF SECRETARY HAS ASKED ALL THE DEFAULTERS TO DECLARE DETAILS AND ALSO THE REASONS FOR THE DELAY BY APRIL 6

While Yogi Adityanath’s government has asked IAS officers to disclose their movable assets by April 6, a large number of them have not even filed the annual immovable property returns till date.

The exercise should have been completed in January this year. Most of the defaulters are those promoted from the provincial civil service.

Chief secretary Rahul Bhatnagar has asked all defaulters to immediately declare/update details regarding the immovable property purchased or disposed of by them and their family members between January 2016 and January 2017.

He has also sought an explanation for the delay.

The state government’s department of appointment and training has even displayed the list of all the 140 defaulting IAS officers who have not filed the returns for 2016. The IAS officers are supposed to disclose their immovable property every year in January.

“I am directed to say that despite the expiry of specified period, you have not made available the annual movable property details either online or in a hard copy to the Government of India or the state government. You, are therefore, asked to file the annual immovable property returns for 2016 by April 6, 2017 citing the reasons for the delay,” the chief secretary has said in a letter to the IAS officers concerned.

The chief secretary, in his letter issued on Saturday, has quoted Section 16 (2) of the All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968 to bring the point home.

“Every member of the service shall submit an annual return in such a format as may be prescribed by the government in this regard, giving full particulars regarding the immovable property inherited by him or owned or acquired by him or held by him on lease or mortgage either in his own name or in name of any member of his family or in the name of any other person,” the said section says.

Of the 140 defaulters, majority are the promotee IAS officers coming from junior batches. For example, 28 officers each belong to the 2002 and 2008 batches. One each are from 1980, 1984, 1986, 1989, 1994, 1997,2007, 2013 batches.

Similarly, two defaulters each belong to the 1982, 1983, 1987, 1990, 1999,and 2001 batches.