Vohra: Executive’s failure has given judiciary a chance to intervene

Tribune news service
New Delhi, March 8

Maintaining that politicians alone can’t be blamed for all the ills afflicting the bureaucracy, particularly the IAS, a galaxy of senior bureaucrats on Friday said it was time for introspection.

Speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Has the Steel Frame Rusted’, former Chief Secretary of NCT Government of Delhi Shailja Chandra said, “It is easy to say that politicians have failed the IAS officers. But I feel this is not entirely correct. Those in the service need to introspect. If they do not have any extraneous interests, nothing can stop them from serving the people.”

The discussion was organised to mark the release of a book, The Steel Frame: A History of the IAS, by former IAS officer Deepak Gupta.  Releasing the book, former Jammu & Kashmir Governor NN Vohra said top civil and police service personnel have “stood by the country”. 

“If we look at our country since Independence, we have progressed a lot, but we are still faced with twin challenges of poverty and inequality,” Vohra said.

He said improvements in the administration were needed to meet newer challenges. He also asked for ruthless weeding out of the corrupt and progress from individual successes to institutional success.

Noting that both Parliament and state Assemblies have failed the people of this country, Vohra said, “Progressive failure of executive has given judiciary a chance to take over administrative functions.”

During the panel discussion, former IFS-turned-politician Pawan Verma took strong exception to media addressing bureaucrats as “babus”. He pointed out that the meaning of the word in Oxford Dictionary is “English-speaking clerk”.