HC quashes posting of principal secy
Punjab and Haryana high court on Wednesday quashed the appointment of retired IAS officer Suresh Kumar as chief principal secretary to Punjab chief minister Amarinder Singh.
The court said Kumar was holding a public office without any authority of law.
He was appointed shortly after government took over in March 2017.
A Mohali resident, Ramandeep Singh, had moved the high court against the appointment with a petition claiming that the appointment was against consti- tutional scheme and accepted norms.
His counsel Rajan Brar had argued that the tenure of Kumar had been made co-terminus with that of the government. He has been delegated the powers to oversee functioning of principal secretary to the chief minister which is a cadre post.
“Thus, a public office has been usurped by a retired IAS officer. This apart, there is no provision in the rules for bestowing rank of a cabinet secretary on a retired officer,” Brar had told court.
A post graduate in commerce from Delhi University, Kumar is a 1983 batch IAS officer.
He started his career as a sub divisional magistrate (SDM) in Talwandi Sabo and retired as additional chief secretary (development) in April 2016. Kumar served the Punjab government and remained on central deputation in various capacities.
He also handled key governance and regulatory issues pertaining to power, water resources, agriculture, education, industries, tax and economic administration, environment, water supply and sanitation, urban local government, and governance reforms.
CHANDIGARH:The