With Kerala’s top bureaucratic post of Chief Secretary set to fall vacant after the retirement of current incumbent A Jayathilak (IAS:1991:KL) on June 30, options before the state govt to select the next administrative head are narrowing rapidly with factors like seniority, political equations, and past controversies all coming into play to decide the fate of contenders.
According to the gradation list, Manoj Joshi (IAS;1989:KL) is at the top, but he is currently on central deputation and is unlikely to run for the post. The same is the case with Rachna Shah (IAS:1991:KL), who is serving as the DoPT Secretary and is out of contention for the CS post.
So there are three officers left in the race—Sanjeev Kaushik (IAS;1992:KL), Bishwanath Sinha (IAS:1992:KL), and K R Jyothilal (IAS:1993:KL).
Sanjeev Kaushik too is presently on deputation and has ruled himself out of the race for the top bureaucratic post. He has clearly said that he would not be returning to the Kerala cadre at this stage due to personal reasons and has informed the govt of his inability to take up an assignment.
So now, with Kaushik stepping aside, the choice is to be made between two senior officers—present ACS (Home) Bishwanath Sinha and ACS (Finance) K R Jyothilal.
According to seniority, Sinha is placed ahead in the line of consideration. But it is to be seen if the newly elected Congress-led UDF govt will ever choose him as the next chief of state bureaucracy because Congress functionaries had publicly demanded strong action against him during the previous LDF regime over allegations raised by women IAS officers regarding inappropriate behaviour.
Besides, within bureaucratic circles, Sinha has long been perceived as being close to the previous LDF administration. It is unlikely that the Congress-led govt will overlook those past political positions and elevate him to the state’s top bureaucratic post.
Thus, Jyothilal seems to be the only logical choice, as he is also widely viewed as an officer who has maintained a non-controversial service record and has worked acceptably across different political dispensations in the state.
Get Latest Updates