The Punjab government asked all law officers to resign as it plans to restructure the Advocate General’s office. There are talks that some law officers from Delhi may get posts in Punjab after AAP’s loss there. But the Advocate General said the officers were only on a one-year contract. This step is part of a bigger administrative change.
All 236 law officers employed by the Punjab government have submitted their resignations at the request of the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) administration.
Advocate General Gurminder Singh confirmed that all law officers associated with his office have tendered their resignations, but noted,
“These resignations have not been accepted yet. For the time being, they will continue in their positions until the entire AG office is restructured,”
Among the 236 law officer positions, there are two senior additional advocates general, 44 additional advocates general, 30 senior deputy advocates general, 61 deputy advocates general, 92 assistant advocates general, and seven advocates on record.
This move to request resignations comes amid a broader purge, with over 50 police officers dismissed most due to corruption allegations and a reshuffling of police chiefs across nine districts, causing a stir among political circles.
There is speculation that, following the AAP’s recent setbacks in Delhi, several law officers from the national capital, who are perceived as close to the party, may be appointed in the Punjab AG’s office. Officially, the government claims it aims to restructure the department to bring in new energy.
Gurminder Singh, however, dispelled rumors regarding his own resignation, stating,
“I am not resigning.”
He justified the call for resignations by noting that the law officers had completed their one-year term on February 10.
He explained,
“We are not throwing people out. We will just restructure the department to reorient these law officers. We will start the process of appointing law officers afresh,”
An official in the Punjab AG’s office confirmed that these law officers are contracted for one-year terms, typically renewed annually without replacement during a government’s five-year tenure.
There is growing discontent among the resigning law officers.
One law officer who has resigned but whose resignation is still pending acceptance, said,
“We know what they are trying to do. They will reappoint several of us but will also include some faces from Delhi. You will see that in the days to come,”
A source in the state law department indicated that an advertisement seeking applicants for law officer positions would be released next week.
Meanwhile, sources within the government suggested that the AAP administration is dissatisfied with the performance of the AG’s office, especially after losing several cases in court.
The government faced embarrassment when former Congress ministers Bharat Bhushan Ashu and Sunder Sham Arora were bailed out in alleged scams, and when it had to withdraw its notification to prematurely dissolve panchayats last year.
Earlier this month, the government removed 1993-batch IPS officer Varinder Kumar from his role as chief director of the state Vigilance Bureau, attaching him to the office of the DGP. Senior officials claimed this move was linked to the government’s embarrassment over the Ashu and Arora cases.
An official stated,
“The government has been acting against corruption, but these cases have been failing in court,”
The AAP government has recently issued a directive emphasizing zero tolerance for corruption, resulting in the dismissal of 52 police officers, along with the suspension of eight superintendents and 10 deputy superintendents of police.
Furthermore, the Punjab government suspended 2016-batch IAS officer Rajesh Tripathi and launched a vigilance inquiry following serious corruption complaints against him while he was serving as Deputy Commissioner of Sri Muktsar Sahib.