13-05-2025
As tensions ease, Rajasthan Congress's discordant note: ‘Officials who support Cong posted at border'
The Congress in Rajasthan has accused the Bhajan Lal Sharma-led BJP government of 'bias' in postings in districts along the International Border (IB) during the recent escalation in tensions with Pakistan following the Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor.
Speaking with journalists, state Congress state president Govind Singh Dotasra said, 'Rajasthan mein aise listein chaant chaant ke, ye Congressi prashtbhumi ka vyakti hai; ye BJP ke MLA ne kaha hai, isko lagao, isko mat lagao, uss tarah se wahan par duty lagai gayi hai (They have sifted through the lists, and with instructions from BJP MLAs, posted people who are associated with the Congress on the border).'
Claiming that officials 'out of favour with the ruling party', or 'Congress-leaning' were sent to border districts, Dotasra said: 'Why were Health Department doctors sitting with APO (Awaiting Posting Order) for six months? It is good to post people from every department at the border, and our people are ready to go to the border and also enroll in the Army. But there has been politics in this too,' he said.
Over the past few days, while the state was witnessing a flare up on the IB, the Rajasthan government moved quickly to fill vacant posts in border districts to deal with any eventuality. This included appointment of Sub-Divisional Officers, Tehsildars, Naib Tehsildars, and officials in electricity, Water, health, medical departments, etc.
Other additional resources, such as fire brigades, ambulances, and extra personnel from the Rajasthan Armed Constabulary (RAC), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) and Border Home Guard, were also mobilised to border districts like Barmer, Bikaner, Jaisalmer, and Sri Ganganagar, among others.
Dotasra gave the example of a woman veterinarian doctor who, according to him, 'was posted away from her kids, simply because she has a Congress background and not the BJP'.
Urging the BJP government, 'which is talking about fighting and winning wars,' to 'fix its mindset first', Dotasra said: 'The Congress has no objection to appointing anyone anywhere, but the motive behind it should be good.'
According to Section 7 of the Rajasthan Civil Services (Conduct) Rules, 1971, government employees are prohibited from taking part in politics, being a member of a political party, or getting involved in any political activity, etc. In 1972, the Rajasthan government clarified that the RSS and Jamaat-e-Islami too fall under this bracket, and in 1981, added another 17 organisations to the list.
Last year, following in the footsteps of several other states, the Rajasthan government lifted its ban on government employees taking part in activities of the RSS.
Countering the Congress's allegations, state BJP spokesperson Laxmikant Bhardwaj said a government employee 'is not a Congress or BJP person'. 'If Dotasra is saying so, it proves that they have politicised government employees and bureaucrats. Secondly, in the BJP government, no government employee or bureaucrat is transferred on the basis of ideology. Dotasra wants to stay in the headlines, hence he keeps making such false statements,' Bhardwaj said.
