Employees involved in anti-national activities will face termination: J&K Govt

Srinagar:Any Jammu and Kashmir government employee involved in anti-national activities will face termination, a senior officer said.

He said the Government has ordered that every employee is mandatorily required to maintain absolute integrity, honesty and allegiance to the Union of India and do nothing which is unbecoming of a government servant.

The government has also warned employees to face termination from service for their involvement in anti national activities or association or sympathy with persons Involved in any act of sabotage, espionage, treason, terrorism, subversion, sedition, secession, facilitating foreign interference, incitement to violence or any other unconstitutional act.

However, the order issued by the government on Thursday said that the decision of the Union Territory (UT) Level Screening Committee (UTLSC) can be reviewed by the Review Committee, on reference to it by the UT Level Screening Committee or on the representation of any aggrieved employee or employees.

The government has constituted UTLSC for the purpose vide Jammu and Kashmir Civil Services (Verification of Character & Antecedents) Instructions, 1997, notified vide Government Order No.191B-GAD of 1997 dated 09.12.1997 as amended from time to time, for its decision. The UTLSC has been authorized to conduct periodic verification of character and antecedents of Government employees and recommend action.

Commissioner-Secretary to the Government Manoj Kumar Dwivedi said that a Government employee is bound by the J&K Government Employees Conduct Rules all the time during his service. These rules, he said, contain various provisions covering a wide range of activities governing conduct of employees in public and private.

The committee shall during periodic verification of character and antecedents of Government employees investigate his or her Involvement in any act of sabotage, espionage, treason, terrorism, subversion, sedition, secession, facilitating foreign interference, incitement to violence or any other unconstitutional act. Association or sympathy with persons who are attempting to commit any such acts or involved in aiding or abetting or advocating the above acts.

The government order said involvement of an individual's immediate family, persons sharing residential space with the employee to whom he or she may be bound by affection, influence, or obligation or involved in any of the acts, directly or indirectly, having potential of subjecting the individual to duress, thereby posing a grave security risk. Failure to report relatives, persons sharing residential space or associates who are connected with any foreign Government, associations, foreign nationals known to be directly or indirectly hostile to India's national and security interests and failure to report unauthorized association with a suspected or known collaborator or employee of a foreign intelligence service. Reports indicating that representatives or nationals from a foreign country are acting to increase the vulnerability of the individual to possible future exploitation, coercion . Report contacts with citizens of other countries or financial interests in other countries which make an individual potentially vulnerable to coercion, exploitation, or pressure by a foreign Government.

The order said that on the basis of discrete verifications , a list of adversely reported employees received by the Government from time to time shall be taken into cognizance by the concerned Administrative Departments which shall then immediately report it to the General Administration Department (GDA), the order said.

However, in the event, such employee or employees are due for promotion (Functional Non-functional), their cases shall be put on hold immediately. Further, such cases shall be submitted to the UTLSC constituted for the purpose.

The official order said that on confirmation of the adverse report by the UTLSC, further action shall be taken against the adversely reported employee(s), which may include termination from Government services. The decision of the UTLSC can be reviewed by the Review Committee, on reference to it by the UT Level Screening Committee or on the representation of any aggrieved employee or employees, the order issued said.(UNI)