Zakir Naik row: MHA joint secys plead Rajnath to review colleague's suspension

September 06, 2016 18:41

In an unprecedented move, 15 joint secretaries serving in the ministery of home affairs on Tuesday met Home Minister Rajnath Singh and urged him to reconsider the decision to suspend senior IAS officer G K Dwivedi for renewal of Foreign Contribution Regulation Act licence of controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik's NGO.

They conveyed to the home minister that Dwivedi, who was serving as Joint Secretary-Foreigners in the home ministry, has been "wrongly punished" for the alleged lapses of his juniors, who reportedly facilitated the renewal of FCRA licence of Naik's Islamic Research Foundation.

Sources said the senior officers, mostly belonging to IAS, told the home minister that Dwivedi is an honest officer and such action sends "wrong signal" and is "demoralising" for others.

The home minister assured the joint secretaries that he will look into the matter, the sources said.

Dwivedi also separately met the home minister to plead his case.

The move by the joint secretaries is seen as unprecedented as there has been no such happening when the bureaucrats joined hands to stand by one of their colleagues, who faced disciplinary action by the government.

Dwivedi, along with three of his junior officers, was suspended last week after the government found that the FCRA licence of an NGO run by Naik was renewed by the home ministry's foreigners division headed by him (Dwivedi) despite several probes against Naik for allegedly radicalising youths and attracting them towards extremism.

On Saturday, four joint secretaries had met Union Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi with the same demand.

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