Srinagar: A delegation of KAS officers called on Lt Governor Manoj Sinha and expressed gratitude to him for speedy implementation of the judgement pronounced by the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) relating to the seniority dispute of Kashmir Administrative Service(KAS) and release of Special Scale in favour of the officers of 99 Batch. Chief Secretary B. V. R Subrahmanyam, Principal Secretary Home Shaleen Kabra and Commissioner Secretary General Administration Department Manoj Kumar Diwedi were also present at the meeting.
The delegation of KAS officers told the Lt Governor that Government’s decision of handling the long pending dispute in a deft and swift manner soon after the pronouncement of judgment by the CAT on 2nd April has brought to an end a long pending legal controversy , saying that, it exhibited the seriousness and sensitivity of the government to address the issues plaguing the premier service of Jammu and Kashmir .
The delegation also hailed the contributions and efforts of Chief Secretary B. V. R. Subrahmanyam at this crucial juncture and said that his keen interest and dextrous approach paved way for speedy implementation of the judgment of the CAT, aimed to bring an end to the legal tangle in the larger interest of KAS Cadre. The delegation also lauded the role of Manoj Diwedi, Commissioner Secretary, General Administration Department and other stakeholders in the speedy finalization of the revised seniority list .
It may be mentioned here that the seniority dispute of KAS officers was subject matter of a legal dispute since 2011 in the J&k High Court till the establishment of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) Bench at Jammu in the year 2020. A fresh application titled Anoo Malhotra & Oter Vs State and Others was also filed by a group of officers after the publication of draft redrawn seniority list by the General Administration Department on August 5 last year on the recommendations of report submitted by the Hirdesh Committee. The CAT ordered day to day hearing in the case and after culmination of the arguments decided the matter in a record time of less than 6 months, on 28th march, which led to revision of final seniority list of KAS officers, notifed by the Government on 7th April this year . The pendency of the seniority dispute had created extreme sense of despair and demoralization amongst all ranks of KAS officers due to stagnation and delayed promotions. However, the resolution of the seniority dispute will open the path for induction of KAS officers into IAS which had got stalled for about a decade due to non finalization of seniority.
The delegation also raised various other issues concerning welfare and strengthening of the Kashmir Administrative Service in the meeting. The Lieutenant Governor assured favourable consideration of issues relating to further improvement of career progression avenues for officers and strengthening of KAS cadre.
