IAS Officer’s Suspension Revoked

Mumbai:The Maharashtra Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar on Monday directed the state government to revoke suspension of M. Devendra Singh, a 2011-batch IAS officer, ten days after he was suspended for allegedly failing to brief Environment Minister Pankaja Munde. The development follows high-level discussions in the Legislative Assembly involving senior ministers and Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

The controversy began during the first week of the Budget Session, when a heated debate broke out in the Assembly over the sharp rise in pollution levels in Chandrapur district in the Vidarbha region.

During the discussion on February 26, Environment Minister Pankaja Munde informed the House that despite summoning senior officials of the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board (MPCB), they did not appear to brief her on the issue during the Assembly proceedings.

Following this, presiding officer Dilip Mama Lande ordered the suspension of M. Devendra Singh, Member Secretary of the MPCB. The order was implemented by the state’s General Administration Department (GAD) within 24 hours, on February 27.

Making a statement in the House, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Chandrakant Patil said that the concerned officers — Mr Singh and MPCB joint director Satish Padwal — had presented the facts before the Assembly Speaker along with documentary evidence. They also expressed regret over the incident and assured that such an incident would not recur in the future.

The officers also submitted a written explanation to the Speaker and the House detailing the circumstances surrounding the incident.

“Considering all these aspects, I place before the House a proposal that the suspension of the concerned officer be revoked and that he be immediately reinstated to his original post,” Mr Patil said.

Responding to the proposal, Assembly Speaker Rahul Narwekar said he had sought a detailed report on the matter and that the government had apprised him and the House of the developments.

“The concerned officer has expressed regret over the lapse. Considering the overall circumstances, I direct the state government to revoke the suspension order of the concerned officer,” Mr Narwekar said.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said that since the Speaker had withdrawn the earlier order issued by the presiding officer, the government would take the necessary steps to revoke the suspension.

A senior official later confirmed that, in accordance with the direction of the House, the suspension order of Mr Devendra Singh would be revoked.