Vijayawada : Senior IPS officer AB Venkateswara Rao has written to the secretary of the AP chapter of IPS Officers Association complaining against the government’s vindictive attitude towards him. He appealed to the secretary to convene a meeting of the general body of the Association as soon as possible to hear his side and take an appropriate decision. The following is the full text of the letter:”Dear Dwaraka,
“This is to bring to your notice, the facts of harassment, humiliation and victimization of a member of the service by the State government of Andhra Pradesh.
“As you are aware, the same day that the new political government was sworn in. i.e. on 30-5-2019, I was transferred by the State government from the post of Director General, ACB, and directed to report to GAD.
“I was kept without posting or salary for seven months. After patiently waiting for seven months, I made a written request on 6-1-2020 to release my salary and to post me to any position. I followed it up with a reminder on 28-1-2020.
“There was no case or inquiry pending against me while I was kept without posting or salary. It is a matter of record that I never faced any allegations or enquiries and never had an adverse ACR in my 30 year long service serving under various political governments.
“There was no response to my requests. And on 2-2-2020 the DGP (GoPF) gave a memo to ADG CID to enquire into the aborted procurement of certain equipment which was handled by the DGP’s office two years ago. It is pertinent to mention that in the aborted procurement, not a single rupee was spent, nor lost.
“The so called enquiry was intrusted to a DSP in CID on 3-2-2020 and a report was produced on 6-2-2020. The same was forwarded to the State government on 7-2-2020 and based on the said report, I was placed under suspension on 8-2-2020.
“Along with suspension order, a massive media campaign was undertaken by certain organs of the State by way of passing to the local and national media, unsigned and unsubstantiated wild allegations like treason etc against me and members of my family.
“I had filed an OA in the CAT at considerable expenditure in the form of advocate fee etc and the OA was dismissed. I filed an appeal in the form of a WP and the High Court of AP allowed the WP and set aside my suspension and directed the State government to reinstate me into service with all attendant /consequential benefits-monetary and otherwise.
“However, the State government has not implemented the orders of the high court and instead, filed an SLP in the SC six months later and the Supreme Court passed an interim orders staying the HC order pending further litigation. In each of these rounds of litigations I had to spend considerable amount of personal savings.
“Ten months after placing me under suspension, the State government recently issued Articles of Charge. Perusal of the charges and imputations reveal that there is no truth or substance in the charges and I am confident of disproving all the articles of chare before the enquiring authority.
“In the meantime, I have been receiving reliable information that the State government has decided to fabricate criminal case against me and arrest me without giving me an opportunity to even seek an anticipatory bail and suspend me on the basis of being in judicial remand for 48 hours and more.
“I am placing all these facts on the record and I request you to convene a meeting of general body of the IPS Association, AP Chapter, to discuss the matter and for the general body and/or the executive committee to take decisions to intervene in the issue in a way deemed fit in the spirit of esprit de corps camaraderie-all by abiding to the charter and by-laws of the Association.
“I am not seeking any favours from the Association but seeking attention as it is only a case of harassment by the government, without an iota of evidence, against an officer for their own nefarious ends. It is not a case of an officer being enquired into with information and material against him, but being enquired into on the basis of false claims and cooked up evidence/charges.
“I may remind you that on similar occasions, the IPS Association has formally as well as informally intervened and ensured fairness. More specifically, when Mr. K.V. Rajendranath Reddy, present ADGP Intelligence, AP was placed under suspension in 2009 December while he was working as CP, Vijayawada on the issue of ‘escape’ of the then MP, Vijayawada, from the hospital, the fellow IPS officers including myself met the then DGP and ensured that he was reinstated in one week without any charges being pressed.
“I agree that every case is different. Once the general body of the Association is convened, I’ll explain my side and clarify all the doubts any member (s) may have and leave it to the wisdom of the general body to come to any conclusion and take a decision whether to intervene and if so, in what manner.
“I only want a fair and impartial enquiry, that the career executives adhere to constitutional obligations without fear or favour and the additional responsibility of olice offiecers to remember their oath and conduct enquries and investigations assigned to them by sticking to the principles of Rule of Law and Natural Justice.
“I state with all humility that failure to even take note of, let alone intervene, in support of a fellow officer being humiliated and hunted by the government of the day will go down as a blot on the Association and will lead to question of the raison d’etre of the Association.
“Therefore, I request you to convene the General Body of the Association at the earliest.”
Thanking you,
Yours faithfully
AB Venkateswara Rao, (IPS)
1989 RR, AP.
