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An officer honest
to the core I was very happy to read excerpts from Mr B.R. Lal’s book,
CBI — The Naked Truth (Spectrum, July 15). Mr Lal is from my batch of the IPS. He was one of the best IPS officers that India has had, along with Mr H.S. Mohan, both of whom were allotted the Haryana cadre. Mr Lall was a stoic, stiff probationer officer with a guttural voice. So we called him the Lord. As a refugee he didn’t come from a very wealthy family. Before he entered the IPS, he was a Class I officer in a national bank. Though his exterior was rough, inside he was a gentleman, truthful and as moral as a nun. From the beginning, he could ask difficult questions from our seniors which none of us had the guts to ask. He lived simply, kept three white terrylene shirts which he would wash himself along with his underwear. The third shirt he kept if he needed one in an emergency. He kept two grey suits and the customary Jodhpore jacket. He polished his own shoes and boots, a habit which he didn’t drop till he became the DGP. As a result of his integrity, the Central government or the Haryana government never let him be at a posting for over a year. What is remarkable about this officer is that he never once complained about his frequent transfers, though they were usually from one end of India to the other. I have known some other honest officers who did put in their papers and resigned when treated like shuttlecocks. But he never cribbed, went to his new posting, began the house-cleaning job, which again perturbed his seniors and on he went to his next post.
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What he has written is the gospel truth. He was never given to exaggeration. In his writing he is simple. Uses short sentences, where he can’t go wrong grammatically. He writes without inhibition, with accuracy, without fear or the consequences and the greatest quality without expecting any reward. His account is straight from the heart. Many IAS and IPS officers tell me there is no protection in the system to make them function objectively and honestly. There was no system for him as I think he doesn’t expect anything from anyone. He still polishes his own shoes, keeps three white shirts, washes them himself and the wardrobe is confined to just the two suits. What he has written must be read by all who value integrity, truthfulness, simplicity and high values. His book should become the bible for all officers past and present, no matter what their service tab. I’ll buy one as soon as I’m out of jail. I am proud to have him as my colleague. He was DGP Haryana for only a short while because the casteist Haryana politician likes a Haryanvi Jat to fill the slot. He’s a man who wouldn’t care two hoots. If he says it’s the ‘Naked Truth’, be prepared for a striptease. All Judges must read this book. SIMRANJIT SINGH MANN, Central Jail, Ludhiana Looting the public I read the report, “State revenue on a platter to private player”. This is organised loot in the name of BOT and is happening everywhere in connivance with corrupt bureaucrats and politicians. For instance, the 100-km road from Balachaur to Dasua has three toll booths and one has to pay Rs 29 at each of these booths. The government has washed off its hands from development of roads and bridges and the bureaucrats and politicians have found a new way of
looting the public. After all who is going to check if the period of collection of toll tax is increased by a few years by greasing a few palms? I think courts should come forward to review the BOT policy. There should be some transparency in the building cost of these utilities and the collection period and amount. J.S. MINHAS, Shimla
Ready for demolition Strangely, while the Punjab and Haryana High Court had desired the removal of structures on the 30-metre wide statutory belt along the scheduled roads, the district town planners in Haryana have prepared a lengthy list of structures in areas up to 100 metres for demolition. This has caused consternation among those affected. The authorities concerned should understand the problem in the correct perspective and work out a solution. VISHWA MITRA, Panipat
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