Shimla, March 6
A high-level committee headed by the Chief Secretary will hold a meeting here around March 20 to form a panel of three IAS officers who will be considered for the top administrative post with Rajwant Sandhu, the current incumbent, retiring by the end of this month.

The crucial meeting will be the first formal step towards finding a successor to Sandhu. Even as names of Ashok Thakur, currently on central deputation, and Sudipto Roy, Additional Chief Secretary, are doing the rounds, the possibility of the state getting a third successive woman Chief Secretary cannot be ruled out with Harinder Hira being the senior-most among those serving in Himachal. The committee, headed by Sandhu, will have the Principal Secretary, Personnel, and other senior principal secretary-level officers.

The committee will empanel three officers possibly comprising the senior-most Additional Chief Secretary Hira, along with Roy and Ashok Thakur. However, it is solely the prerogative of the Chief Minister to even go in for somebody other than these three.

S Vijay Kumar, Secretary, Rural Development at the Centre, S Behuria, who is heading the National Disaster Management Authority, and Hira belong to the 1976 batch. It is unlikely that Kumar and Behuria will return to the state, thus making Hira the senior-most IAS officer serving in Himachal.

Even though Hira is due to retire on April 30 this year, speculation is rife that she could be made the Chief Secretary even though for a short duration of a mere month. Her sister, Parminder Mathur, too had retired from the post of Additional Chief Secretary and could not make it to the top post. In case Hira finds favour with the governemnt, Himachal will probably be the only state in the country to have three successive women chief secretaries. Sandhu had succeeded Asha Swaroop.

Thakur, who is currently heading the Industrial Policy Promotion Agency at the Centre, has already conveyed his willingness to return to his home state provided he is offered the post of Chief Secretary.

He has conveyed his willingness through a letter written to the Chief Secretary in mid-February.

Thakur, a 1977-batch officer, is due to retire in July 2014, while Roy, a batch junior to him, will superannuate in February 2015. Thakur’s wife, Sarojini Ganju Thakur, who retired last year, is currently heading the HP Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Commission.

It is only by the end of this month that it will become clear as to who is tipped to be the next Chief Secretary.

Even as the names of Ashok Thakur, currently on central deputation, and Sudipto Roy, Additional Chief Secretary, are doing the rounds, the possibility of the state getting a third successive woman Chief Secretary cannot be ruled out with Harinder Hira being the senior-most among those serving in Himachal.

Shimla, March 6
The results of the Assembly elections in five states, particularly in the neighbouring Punjab, have brought home the harsh reality for the opposition Congress that anti-incumbency alone will not help it stage a comeback in the hill state.

Over the past two decades, the anti-incumbency factor has been playing a decisive role in the elections and the Congress and the BJP have been taking turns to rule the state. However, with the SAD-BJP combine successfully defying the anti-incumbency factor, the Congress can no longer hope to get power on a platter. It will have to work hard for it.

The party will not only have to put its house in order by ending factionalism, but will also have to adopt a more aggressive posture to dispel the perception that it is soft on the Dhumal regime.

The Himachal Lokhit Party, a new outfit floated by a breakaway BJP group, has unleashed a relentless attack on the government on the issue of corruption and the Congress cannot allow it to hijack its agenda.

Senior Congress leaders like Virbhadra Singh have been critical of their own party for its failure to take the Dhumal government head-on and even stated on record that the HLP has been raising issues far more effectively.

Kaul Singh, who was given a second term as the PCC chief, has much to ponder over in view of the poor performance of his party in the northern states. His task of bringing the Congress back to power has seemingly become more difficult and he will not only have to rework the party’s strategy but also change its approach.

The tussle between senior leaders for occupying the chief ministerial seat has suddenly turned into a struggle for bringing the party back to power.

The BJP has every reason to be pleased and believe that what has happened in Punjab can be repeated in Himachal. It has now a fair chance of retaining power. However, much will depend on how it handles the issue of corruption, the main plank of the Congress. BJP rebels have also been using it to whip the Dhumal government and specifically targeting some ministers.

The strategy of the high command to replace tainted leaders by those with a clean image has worked in Punjab and Uttarakhand. It will be interesting to see if the party adopts the same strategy in case of Himachal where elections are due late in the year.

Una, March 6
The 17th Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorjee, was today granted exemption from personal appearance by a Una court in a criminal case filed against him by the police.

Though summons could not be served on the Karmapa as he was in Bodhgaya, his lawyers today appeared in the court and filed an application for exemption from personal appearance. The Civil Judge, Junior Division, Una, granted exemption from personal appearance to the Karmapa for today.

The police had managed to serve summons on four out of the 10 accused in the case, including Dharamsala-based businessman KP Bhardwaj from whose vehicle Rs 1 crore was confiscated.