Omar defends IAS officer for his controversial tweet

Former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir Omar Abdullah on Wednesday defended Shah Faesal, the 2010 IAS topper, who is facing disciplinary action for his “sarcastic tweet against rape-culture in south Asia.”

Earlier taking a serious note of Faesal’s remarks on Twitter, the Department of Personnel and Trainings (DoPT) directed the state government to initiate action against the officer for what it calls as a violation of the service rules governing the All India Services.

He has been given a fortnight to explain his position, failing which the action as warranted under service rules shall follow. The DoPT is the cadre controlling authority for IAS officers.

Faesal, who is presently in the US pursuing a post-graduate course at the Harvard University, had tweeted: “Population +patriarchy +illiteracy +alcohol +porn +technology +anarchy = rapistan (sic).”

Defending the IAS officer, Omar tweeted: "I see this notice as a case of bureaucratic over-enthusiasm where people who are pushing the files at the top do not understand the spirit of the times we are living in.

"You have no problem when officers from Rajasthan and elsewhere defy 'set norms of governance and conduct', yet Faesal's tweet about rape bothers you. Somehow this does not surprise me at all!

"Looks like the DoPT is determined to chase @shahfaesal out of the civil services. The last line of this page is shocking and unacceptable where they question Faesal's 'integrity and honesty'. How is a sarcastic tweet dishonest? How does it make him corrupt?"

After being served notice, Faesal took to social media again to voice his dissent: “the irony is that service rules with a colonial spirit are invoked in a democratic India to stifle the freedom of conscience. And this is not a stunt. I am sharing this to underscore the need for a rule change for the changing times,” he wrote on his Facebook timeline.

He is the second officer of J&K cadre against whom the Centre has requested the state government to initiate disciplinary action for their comments/ write-ups.

Earlier, the Centre had requested the state to initiate action IPS officer Basant Rath (IGP traffic) for his write-up published in different newspapers. Faesal, who hails from remote Lolab area of north Kashmir, has been quite active on social media and often shared his views on the issue.