Uproar over posting of JKAS officer in LA

Assembly Secretariat writes to GAD to withdraw order

Jammu Tawi, Aug 27: The Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly Secretariat has written to the General Administration Department (GAD), seeking withdrawal of the order appointing a Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) officer in the Assembly Secretariat.

In a letter, the LA Secretariat has asked the Commissioner Secretary, GAD, to revoke the posting of Bilal Ahmad Mir, JKAS, as Deputy Secretary in the Assembly.

The Secretariat maintained that the officer “lacks the requisite qualification to run the National e-Vidhan Application (NeVA) project in the J&K Legislative Assembly.”

The National e‑Vidhan Application (NeVA) is an initiative to make legislative assemblies paperless, digital, and accessible on a single platform.

Instead, the Assembly Secretariat, in the letter,  has recommended that the Information Technology Department depute a qualified IT professional for six months in the first instance, who would remain stationed in the Assembly Secretariat to oversee execution of the NeVA project. The deputed officer, as per the letter, would retain lien and cadre rights in his parent department, while his salary would be drawn on the basis of attendance certified by the Assembly Secretariat.

The appointment of JKAS officer had earlier triggered strong protests from the Assembly Secretariat staff, who accused the government of undermining the autonomous character of the legislature.

Several MLAs had also voiced concern over what they termed “interference” in the functioning of the Assembly.