The New Indian Express News

Miffed by public 'humiliation', Bihar revenue officers complain to Nitish about deputy CM Sinha

PATNA: Accusing deputy chief minister Vijay Kumar Sinha of humiliating its members, the Bihar Revenue Service Association (BiRSA) has written to chief minister Nitish Kumar, threatening to boycott public grievance redressal sessions if corrective measures are not taken immediately. Sinha, who is also holding the portfolio of revenue and land reforms department, earned revenue officers wrath after he issued a stern warning to them against collusion with land mafia in the state. He said that erring officials would be identified and brought to book. He has also started holding Bhumi Sudhar Jankalyan Samvad (public grievance redressal sessions) for addressing related matters in districts. BiRSA has lodged a formal complaint with the chief minister, accusing Sinha of humiliating revenue officials during these sessions. The association alleged that Sinha was using language that undermined constitutional norms and administrative decorum. BiRSA threatened that if such humiliation was not stopped immediately, its officers would be forced to boycott such programmes in future. After assuming charge of the department, Sinha had held public dialogues in districts such as Patna, Muzaffarpur and Purnea, where he listened to people complaints in the presence of departmental officers. Officers objected to the deputy chief minister's remarks allegedly made during public hearings such as We will suspend you on the spot, Answer here in front of the public, and Immediate decisions will be taken. The deputy CM, who claimed he was not aware of such a letter, asserted that he would not succumb to any pressure and that action would be taken against those who were found indulging in wrongdoing. Regarding officers allegations of insulting and abusing members, the deputy chief minister said that in public interactions, no one was abused or insulted. He further stated that if anybody has any grievance, he or she should talk to him. I have so far not received any complaint from any individual or any group, he told this reporter over the phone on Saturday.