Even as BJP leader Badrilal Yadav, a former minister, released a video claiming his comments against the district collector of Rajgarh at a rally were distorted by the Congress, the IAS Association has strongly condemned the “derogatory and disrespectful” remarks.
Meanwhile, strongly objecting to the attitude of the BJP leaders towards lady officers and the remarks made by Yadav against Rajgarh Collector Nidhi Nivedita, government employees in Rajgarh district went on a 'pen-down' strike on Thursday, bringing to a halt government work in the district.
Nivedita did not respond to the attempts by THE WEEK to talk to her on the issue.
After his comments against Nivedita created a huge controversy, Yadav released a video on his Facebook page. He said that he never made any adverse comments against any officers and his comments at the rally on Wednesday had been presented in a distorted manner by the Congress. He did not offer any apology in the video.
Speaking to THE WEEK, Madhya Pradesh BJP chief spokesman Deepak Vijayvargiya said that the party expects its leaders to use restrained language in public discourse that does not leave any chance for misinterpretation. “Having said that, the only thing the ex-minister, Yadav, meant was that the officers were soft on Congress workers and harsh on those of BJP. That was it,” Vijayvargiya said.
IAS Association livid
The IAS Association—the central association of IAS officers of India—on Thursday tweeted its condemnation and expressed solidarity with officers of Madhya Pradesh. “We stand by our colleagues at MP IAS Association and strongly condemn the derogatory and disrespectful remarks against the DM and other officials of Rajgarh district Madhya Pradesh,” the association tweeted.
The tweet quoted a letter by the MP IAS Officers’ Association to the chief secretary of Madhya Pradesh, written following the incident. In the letter signed by its president I.C.P. Keshari, the association strongly condemned the remarks by Yadav. It added that such remarks not only demoralise the administrative machinery but also demean the dignity of women officials. “MP IAS Association unequivocally condemns the usage of inappropriate language and undignified conduct with respect to any officer of the state on duty,” it said.
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IAS officers of Madhya Pradesh cadre like public relations commissioner P. Narhari, managing director of the MP Cooperative Marketing Federation Swati Meena Naik and Raghuraj Rajendran, private secretary to Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, tweeted to condemn the comments by the BJP leader and to express support for the Rajgarh district collector.
“Strongly condemn such comments against any officer or any woman,” Narhari said. “Is this the land of people worshipping Durga and Lakhsmi?” Swati Meena’s tweet asked. Rajendran’s tweet said “Such crass language does not represent Madhya Pradesh or India.”
Ashoknagar District Collector Manju Sharma also condemned the derogatory remarks made against Nivedita, noting such an "atmosphere makes working difficult". Sharma herself was the target of derogatory remarks by BJP MP K.P. Yadav in August 2019.