Not seen an order like this before: Omar
Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, May 29: In a significant order, the Jammu and Kashmir administration today directed Administrative Departments to mark all papers and files to new Chief Secretary Arun Kumar Mehta with effect from May 31.
Former Chief Minister and National Conference vice president Omar Abdullah termed the order as “very unusual”.
Yesterday, the Union Territory Government issued an order appointing Mehta, a 1988-batch IAS officer of AGMUT cadre (erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir cadre) and serving as Financial Commissioner (Finance) Arun Mehta, as the new Chief Secretary after incumbent B V R Subrahmanyam was appointed as an Officer on Special Duty in the Union Ministry of Commerce till he takes over as the Commerce Secretary on June 30 on retirement of the present incumbent.
In an order, Commissioner/ Secretary to the Government General Administration Department (GAD) Manoj Kumar Dwivedi said it is hereby ordered that all the functions of the Jammu and Kashmir Chief Secretary would now be disposed of by Mehta.
“Accordingly, all the Administrative Departments are directed to address/mark all the papers and files to Arun Kumar Mehta, IAS, with effect from 31.05.2021,” the order read.
Civil Secretariat remains closed on Saturday and Sunday and from Monday i.e. May 31, the UT administration has asked all the Administrative Departments to report to Mehta.
Subrahmanyam, a Chattisgarh cadre IAS officer remained as the Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir for almost three years as he was posted here in June 2018.
Meanwhile, former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, the National Conference vice president, said he had not seen such an order before.
“Very unusual order issued by the J&K Government. If I didn’t know better I’d read this order to mean the outgoing CS wasn’t too keen to hand over charge to his successor. Either way I haven’t seen an order like this before,” Omar said in a tweet.
In another tweet, apparently referring to the outgoing Chief Secretary, he said, “A man who famously said no Kashmiris shed tears when mainstream politicians were detained in 2019. In 2021, it looks like no one can wait to show him the door. Be careful who you step on the way up, you will meet them on the way down.”
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