Support grows for IAS officer suspended for fighting sand mafia.
A young IAS officer who took the powerful sand mafia in Uttar Pradesh head on has been suspended, just months into her assignment.Durga Shakti Nagpal, the 28-year-old sub-divisional magistrate of Gautam Budh Nagar, was penalised late Saturday ostensibly for the demolition of a wall at a disputed place of worship in Greater Noida.
The move prompted Opposition parties to accuse the government of acting under pressure from the mining mafia. "What mistake has she made? It is felt she was suspended under the influence of the mafia," BJP's Kalraj Mishra said Sunday.
Chief minister Akhilesh Yadav tweeted in response: "It is an administrative decision."
Nagpal had lodged two dozen FIRs against the sand mafia and arrested more than a dozen people after forming a special team to curb rampant illegal mining in her district, especially along the Yamuna and Hindon rivers.
Only last week, the 2009-batch officer had asserted there would be no let-up in her fight.
"We had to shut our business for two months because of Nagpal's drive against sand mining in the Yamuna. We are happy with her suspension," said one mining contractor, requesting anonymity.
On Monday, the IAS officers' association in the state demanded that Nagpal's suspension be revoked.Opposition parties in the state criticised the Samajwadi Party government for "harassing" the officer.
Moreover, the perception of locals and colleagues
that she is an upright and honest officer has been validated by a report
submitted by Gautam Buddh Nagar district magistrate Ravikant Singh to
the government.
A district administration official told HT that, a month ago, Nagpal
had rubbed UP agro chairman and senior SP leader Narendra Bhati the
wrong way by lodging an FIR against his close aide Omendra Khari in a
sand mining case."Bhati was annoyed with Nagpal because of the action she took against Khari and because she did not protect his supporters involved in illegal sand mining," the official said. "This is why he hatched a plot involving a mosque that never was and trapped her."
Meanwhile, CM Akhilesh Yadav and senior party leader Azam Khan continued to defend the decision to suspend Nagpal while Union minister of state for personnel V Narayanasamy said the government will look into the suspension.
The official added that Bhati distributed Rs. 51,000 among residents of Greater Noida's Kadalpur village and told them there was no need to take permission to build a mosque if the whole village wanted one. Once the villagers raised a wall, he got a verbal complaint registered with Nagpal that a religious building was coming up on government land and that it should be demolished as it could disturb peace in the area.
"Nagpal, after taking directions from the district magistrate and the police, reached the spot and asked the villagers to demolish the wall," the official said, adding that the locals themselves had brought down the wall and there was no mosque that had come up yet.
Younus Khan, a villager, also told HT that it was Bhati who had encouraged locals to build a mosque on government land.
Bhati also lied to CM Akhilesh Yadav that Nagpal had demolished a mosque, prompting him to fear a religious backlash and suspend her immediately.
STORY OF ANOTHER HONEST IAS OFFICER.
First Rank in State in Secondary School Examination
First Rank in University in Plus Two
First Rank in IIT Entrance Examination
First Rank in All India IIT Computer Science
First Rank in IAS Entrance Examination
First Rank in IAS Training Institute
On passing out from IIT Chennai Mr. Narayanaswamy was offered scholarship by the prestigious Massachusetts Institute of Technology , USA .. He who came from a middle class family believed that he had a moral obligation to give something in return for the lakhs of rupees the government spent on him as an IIT student. He had the intelligence and conviction to realize that this money came also from the poorest of the poor - who pay up the excise duty on textiles when they buy cloth, who pay up customs, excise and sales tax on diesel when they travel in a bus, and in numerous other ways indirectly pay the government. So he decided to join IAS hoping he could do something for the people of this country. How many young men have the will power to resist such an offer from USA ? Narayanaswamy did never look at IAS as a black money spinner as his later life bears testimony to this fact.
After a decade of meritorious service in IAS, today, Narayanaswamy is being forced out of the IAS profession. Do you know why?
A real estate agent wanted to fill up a paddy field which is banned under law. An application came up before Narayanaswamy who was sub collector the, for an exemption from this rule for this plot of land. Upon visiting the site he found that the complaint from 60 poor families that they will face water logging due to the waste water from a nearby Government Medical College if this paddy field was filled up was correct. Narayanswamy came under intense political pressure but he did what was right - refused permission for filling up the paddy field. That was his first confrontation with politicians.
Soon after his marriage his father-in-law closed down a public road to build compound wall for his plot of land. People approached Narayanaswamy with complaint.
When talking with his own father-in-law did not help, he removed the obstructing wall with police help. The result, his marriage broke up.
As district Collector he raided the house of a liquor baron who had defaulted Rupees 11 crores payment to government and carried out revenue recovery. A Minister directly telephoned him and ordered to return the forfeited articles to the house of the liquor baron. Narayanswamy politely replied that it is difficult. The minister replied that Narayanaswamy will suffer.
In his district it was a practice to collect crores of rupees for earthen bunds meant for poor farmers, but which were never constructed. A bill for rupees 8 crores came up before Narayanaswamy. He inspected the bund. He found it very weak and said that he will pass the bill after the rainy season to ensure that the bund served the purpose. As expected the earthen bund was too weak to stand the rain and it disappeared in the rain. But he created a lot of enemies for saving 8 crores public money. The net result of all such unholy activities was that he was asked to go on leave by the government. Later such an illustrious officer was posted as "State Co-Ordinator, Quality Improvement Programme for Schools". This is what the politician will do to a honest officer with backbone - post him in the most powerless position to teach him a lesson. Since he found that nothing can be achieved for the people if he continued with the State Service he opted for central service. But that too was denied on some technical ground.
What will you do when you have a brilliant computer career anywhere in the world you choose with the backing of several advanced technical papers too published in international journals to your credit?
When you are powerless to do anything for the people, why should you waste your life as the Co-Ordinator for a Schools Programme?
Mr. Narayanaswamy is on the verge of leaving IAS to go to Paris to take up a well paid United Nations assignment. The politicians can laugh thinking another obstacle has been removed. But it is the helpless people of this country who will lose - not Narayanaswamy. But you have the power to support capable and honest bureaucra ts like Narayaswamy, G.R.Khairnar and Alphons Kannamthanam who have suffered a lot under self seeking politicians who rule us. You have even the power to replace such politicians with these kind of people dedicated to the country. The question is will you do the little you can do NOW? At least a vote or word in support of such personalities?
