Zeenews Bureau
New Delhi: Raising objections to the one-year extension in tenure to Lok Sabha Secretary General TK Vishwanathan, Leader of Opposition Sushma Swaraj has said he
was "not fit" for the post.
In a letter to Speaker Meira Kumar, Swaraj aired her
objection, saying, "The conduct and behaviour of the present
Secretary General is not fit for the post."
Swaraj gave two more reasons for her objection to the
extension given to Vishwanathan, who is a former Law
Secretary.
"You did not hold a formal meeting with the Leader of
Opposition and Leader of the House on extending the tenure of
the present Secretary General. Holding informal talks on this
cannot be an alternative for a formal meeting. It is a must
for the three to sit together before the decision," Swaraj
said.
When asked about Swaraj`s letter, the Speaker told
reporters, "it is unethical for me to comment on it".
The differences between Kumar and Swaraj over
Vishwanathan are not new with the latter objecting to his
appointment 11 months ago. She has referred to this in her
letter.
"You would remember that at the time of his
appointment last year I had said that Secretary General should
be somebody from the Lok Sabha Secretariat only. At that time
you had said that no official from the LS Secretariat is a
deserving candidate for the post, so we can appoint the
present secretary general for 11 months and will keep your
suggestion in mind the next year," Swaraj said.
The BJP leader maintained that due to this she had
given her consent to Kumar`s proposal.
Sushma Swaraj said that only the officers from the Lok Sabha cadre should be considered for the said post. She is of the view that as TK Vishwanathan is not from the Lok Sabha cadre his appointment would affect the morale of officers who do belong to that cadre.
"Bringing a retired official from outside and making
him Secretary General not only belies their claim but also
lowers their morale and develops an atmosphere of
frustration," she said.
And in a direct attack at him, Swaraj has also reportedly questioned the personal conduct of Vishwanathan saying that his behaviour was not fit for someone holding an important post.
TK Viswanathan was adviser to former Minister for Law and Justice M Veerappa Moily when he was appointed Secretary General of the Lok Sabha on October 01, 2010.
A holder of Masters Degree in Jurisprudence from Madras University, he has worked as Professor at the Madras Law College and Member-Secretary in Law Commission of India.
With PTI inputs
