Chandigarh, September 25
The first signs of impending confrontation between bureaucrats and politicians surfaced today when chief minister Parkash Singh Badal returned about a dozen files, refusing to clear them because the bureaucrats had not made the notings in Punjabi. This is the first case after the enactment of the Punjab Official Languages’ (Amendment) Bill-2008, making it mandatory for government functionaries to use Punjabi for official business.
The bill had been passed in the recently concluded session of the Vidhan Sabha. Sources in the government said Badal had issued strict instructions to the CMO that any file where Punjabi had not been used be sent back to the officers concerned without even putting up those before him.
Some files over which Badal raised his objection and refused to sign pertained to the department of taxation, irrigation and power and also from the offices of the chief secretary and the home secretary, sources said.
Bureaucrats in Punjab, especially those from other states, were hoping that the legislation will remain on paper and the official work will continue in English. But Badal’s stand has given a strong and direct signal that the “babus” must brush up their Punjabi skills.
