Editorial
Admin officials' unexpected ire
But separation of judiciary must on Nov 1
We express our utter shock at the way a section of the administrative officials ventilated their ire at the government on Sunday on the issue of separation of the judiciary from the executive. They put forward their demands in a seminar issuing threats to go for work abstention if those were not met by the government. It goes beyond our comprehension whether government officials while in service can question, reject or counter a government decision taken on the basis of a Supreme Court directive. What surprises us most is the fact that the issue in question has been under the spotlight for many years now and the relevant file has been circulating among the bureaucrats for equal number of years. Then why did not the officials raise the objections during this period that they are raising now?
Some of their demands may merit attention but such visible, defiant outburst coming from serving government officials is not only unprecedented but also unacceptable. The senior and responsible government officials have belittled their cause by taking a confrontational attitude and posture, and we believe it has violated the terms given in the service rules.
We understand that there is need for logistics and human resources to make the separation of judiciary meaningful. And the demand for bringing the judicial magistracy under the Supreme Court secretariat also deserves to be deliberated upon. But at the same time we find that the options put forward by the government for the administrative cadre clearly indicate that there was no reason for them to feel redundant. We suggest to the administration cadre members that whatever reservation they still have about the issue, they should put forward through proper channels and request the government for reconsideration. Let us make it amply clear to them that separation of the judiciary is the demand of the moment and it will be done, regardless of who opposes. The transition period will be of tremendous significance. All steps must be taken to ensure that dispensation of justice is not hampered in any way.
We once again reiterate that whatever substance was there in the demands it got lost in the manner in which these were raised on Sunday. We know that any new step forward may have some initial problems, and we are ready to face them. Since the issue is of utmost national interest it should not be stalled for any reason whatsoever. The nation looks forward to the implementation of the decision on November 1 and not a day later.
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