Don’t air grievances in public: Govt advisory to Roopa, Rohini Sindhuri

BENGALURU: After IAS officer Rohini Sindhuri and IPS officer D Roopa Moudgil, who were engaged in a public spat, met Chief Secretary Vandita Sharma at Vidhana Soudha on Monday, the government has issued an advisory to both officers to observe All India Services (Conduct) Rules in its true spirit.

The advisory said, “It has come to the notice of the government that you have used media for voicing your views against another government servant. Though there is an appropriate forum to raise your allegations/grievances, you have expressed the directly to the media. This has the potential to cause disrepute and embarrassment to the government. This is unbecoming of a civil servant and goes against the spirit of the All India Service (Conduct) Rules and the Circular (No e-DPAR 228 SAS dated 18/09.2021) issues in this regard, which reiterates that officers may use media only if it is necessary in the discharge of their official duties relating to government schemes/dissemination of official information”.

“Use of media to express grievance/allegations, rather than officially raising it with the competent authority should have been avoided. Therefore, you are directed to refrain from approaching the media on any such matters further and to observe All India Service (Conduct) Rules and the contents of the Circular quoted above in its true spirit”, the advisory said.

The letter, signed by James Tharakan, Under-Secretary, Department of Personnel and Administrative Reforms, was issued to both Roopa and Rohini Sindhuri on the instructions of Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai.