Kerala CM opposes amendments to IAS Cadre Rules; 'Will weaken cooperative federalism'

After West Bengal, Rajasthan, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand and Tamil Nadu, another state has opposed the Central government's proposed amendment to the IAS Cadre Rules. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the current deputation rules are themselves heavily loaded in favour of the Centre and additional stringency will weaken the very root of co-operative federalism.

"In our federal set-up, the state governments are on a par with the Central Government as both of them are elected by the people, though the division of authority in the Constitution does give the Union jurisdiction over a wider range of subjects. We need to recognise that in a vibrant democratic and federal polity, States and the Centre can be ruled by political formations with vastly different ideologies and political views. But these Governments function within the framework of the Constitution," the letter reads.

CM Vijayan added in his letter, "The proposed amendments in the Deputation Rules of All India Services will definitely induce a fear psychosis and an attitude of hesitancy among All India Services Officers to implement policies of a state government, which are formed by parties politically opposed by the ruling party at the Centre. The present deputation rules are themselves heavily loaded in favour of the Union and bringing in further stringency will weaken the very root of cooperative federalism. The government of Kerala is of the opinion that these proposed amendments may be dropped."

Vijayan's letter to PM Modi comes after his counterparts in West Bengal, Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, and Chhattisgarh opposed the proposed amendment and wrote to PM Modi opposing the Centre's move.

What is the Centre proposing?

The BJP government has proposed to add a provision in Rule 6 of IAS CADRE Rules, 1954. The present rule says that any IAS officer, with the concurrence of the state government concerned, could be posted on central deputation.

With the current Rule 6, the Centre has proposed to attach: “Provided that each State Government shall make available for deputation to the Central Government, such number of eligible officers of various levels to the extent of the Central Deputation Reserve prescribed under Regulations referred to in Rule 4(1), adjusted proportionately by the number of officers available with the State Government concerned vis-a-vis the total authorised strength of the State Cadre at a given point of time. The actual number of officers to be deputed to the Central Government shall be decided by the Central Government in consultation with the State Government concerned."