Sangrur DC draws PMO’s ire for social media post on aid

Sangrur Deputy Commissioner Rahul Chaba has drawn the ire of the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) and the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) after a post critical of Rs 1,600 crore relief announced by PM Narendra Modi was posted on his official X handle.

The post, now deleted, caught the attention of Punjab BJP leaders, who complained to the PMO and the DoPT, following which the state was asked to act against the officer.

A senior officer in the state government confirmed that they had received two letters — one from the PMO and other from the DoPT — asking them to issue a show-cause notice to the officer.

“A show-cause notice was issued. The officer has also sent his reply, saying he had only put up the post sent to him by the public relations team, and had not vetted the same before putting it out,” said the officer.

Chaba, when contacted, refused to comment on the issue.He was promoted from the state civil services to the IAS last December. He was posted as the DC of Sangrur, the home district of CM Bhagwant Mann, last month.

The Tribune has learnt that initially a post was put out by the Sangrur District Public Relations Officer, saying that Punjab had played a pivotal role in ushering the Green Revolution, making India food sufficient and sacrificed its youth to protect the country.

“The amount of Rs 1,600 crore for flood relief for Punjab is a cruel joke,” said the post, which carried pictures of state Water Resources Minister Barinder Goyal.

A similar post was later posted from the DC’s official handle. A senior officer in the government said that the show-cause notice and the reply by the officer would be sent to the DoPT, which would then decide on the case.