Telangana Wakf Board ignores government order on employing retirees
Telangana Wakf Board, which is a corporate body, does not come under the purview of the GO.
Hyderabad: Despite the government’s ban on reappointment of retired employees as OSDs (officers on special duty), advisers and consultants, the Telangana State Wakf Board continued the practice, claiming that the Board is a corporate body and the government order of May 2, 2015 does not apply to it.
Over a dozen officers aged over 62 years and around 40 retired employees work in the Board.
Following complaints against such employments, the state government issued a memo to the CEO of the Wakf Board on September 22, 2015, seeking details on allegations of illegal bulk appointments.
The CEO replied on December 19, 2015, stating that GO 55 is related to appointment of retired employees from the Secretariat and not other departments. Also, Telangana Wakf Board, which is a corporate body, does not come under the purview of the GO.
The government forwarded the reply to the finance department, which insisted that the GO is applicable to every department and entity working under the government.
Despite this clarification and a memo of June 13, 2016 instructing the CEO to comply with the GO, the Wakf Board, on August 17, 2016, extended the services of M A Gaffar as officer on special duty for a period of one year. Mohammed Khasim, another OSD, also got an extension on August 12, 2016 as did a retired clerk, on August 10, 2016.
When contacted, Omar Jaleel, competent authority of the Board, confirmed that retired officers from Revenue, Wakf Board, Survey and other departments have been reappointed.
He said, “In view of the scarcity of superintendent and deputy collector rank officers in the Board, we are constrained to depend on retired officers.”