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Government defends transfer of secretaries

The government today strongly defended the transfer of Home Secretary B P Singh and nine other officers as well as the Cabinet secretary's order to senior officials that the present government is not a caretaker under the Constitution.

Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan said the order was issued on May 1 as clarification of an earlier order dated April 18, soon after the fall of the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government.

The April 18 order was issued as a routine letter, presuming that an alternate government would be formed in a few days. "Such letters were issued by the Cabinet secretary in the past also," Mahajan said.

But since no alternate government was formed and a fresh election was ordered, forcing the government to continue in office for a few more months, Cabinet Secretary Prabhat Kumar amended the earlier letter.

The Cabinet secretary, in his order, said the present government enjoys full powers under the Constitution since there is nothing in the statute that provides for a "caretaker" government.

On B P Singh's transfer, Mahajan said, "All over the world, governments go for transfers. It is not expected of the government to give the rationale for every transfer to the person who has been transferred or to the press. It is the government's prerogative to transfer any officer."

Describing the transfers as "routine", he said the government would transfer other officers also, if needed.

Mahajan emphasised that the government is capable of taking all decisions in the nation's interest. If required, it can also issue ordinances, he said.

UNI

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