Honest politicians, able bureaucrats must for good governance: Vohra

Tribune News Service

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New Delhi, February 29

Former Governor of Jammu and Kashmir NN Vohra today said the chemistry for success in governance is to have a combination of committed and honest political leadership, and able and efficient public servant.

Speaking as the chief guest at a book release function here, Vohra said in the larger view, governance is the functioning of polity where elected representatives take things forward with the help of appointed public servants.

Vohra released the book, ‘With Four Prime Ministers My PMO Journey’, by Retired 1974-batch IAS officer of Manipur cadre Jarnail Singh, who had an eight-year stint in the PMO from 1996 to 2004.

Speaking about the decade that followed Operation Blue Star and assassination of two Prime Ministers, Vohra said it was one of the most uncertain times in the Indian history, where misuse of authority by public representatives to the level of chief ministers was witnessed.

The period also saw coalition governments at the Centre, which were quite difficult for the then Prime Ministers to take along divergent views, he said, adding that the United Front government was the most uncertain grouping, as none worked together.

Introducing his book, Jarnail Singh said during his stint in the PMO he learnt how to work with zero error in file noting and otherwise, as everything used to go directly to the PM. Taking cue from him, former Union Home Secretary GK Pillai, who was the guest of honour at the function, said, “But now things have become different.” He said, recently the J&K Reorganisation Act was introduced in Parliament and was passed by it with 40 odd errors. “Later the Home Minister had come back to Parliament with corrigendum on those errors. We have filed a PIL in Supreme Court against the J&K Reorganisation Act, which also mentions about the mistakes,” he said.