Politics

Shah Faesal set to serve GOI after a roller coaster ride in the political arena

Shah Faesal, the first IAS topper from Jammu and Kashmir, is once again hogging all the headlines

May 2, 2022

Who sat over his resignation letter for such a long time and shielded him? When his resignation was not accepted who allowed him to play ‘dirty’ politics in Kashmir

Ever since Shah Faesal cracked the prestigious exam he became a household name in the region. For about one decade he served the people of Jammu and Kashmir in different capacities and became their role model.

In January 2019 he abruptly decided to quit the job and launched his own political party to register his protest against the ‘killings’ in Kashmir.

Eight months later, soon after the Abrogation of Article 370 and 35A in August 2019 Shah Faesal once again came under the scanner.

Appearing in one of the interviews on a BBC show, Faesal went on to claim that the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has murdered the Constitution in broad daylight by stripping the special status of J&K.

Less than three months after quitting the job Faesal had launched the Jammu & Kashmir Peoples Movement (JKPM) in March 2019.

He later stepped down from the post of the party president on 10th August 2020, claiming he was not in a position to “continue with political activities”.

In August 2019, when Faesal was traveling abroad he was detained at the IGI Airport in Delhi and was later sent back to the Valley. Thereafter, he was detained under the Public Safety Act, which was revoked in the first week of June 2020.

Now the question arises in the last three years why his resignation was not accepted and why in the first place he was given such a long rope to play his politics?

Why the laid down procedures as per the service rules, governing IAS officers, were not invoked soon after he tendered his resignation.

Another important question that is being asked now is if as per the rules he is being accommodated in the service once again under which rule he was allowed to launch his political outfit if in reality his resignation was not accepted. Any IAS officer cannot launch his political party while remaining in service.

No one is really aware of what exactly transpired behind the scenes which prompted him to once again join the services by dumping the past mistakes.

Announcing his return, Faesal posted a series of tweets on his timeline.

“8 months of my life (Jan 2019-Aug 2019) created so much baggage that I was almost finished. While chasing a chimera, I lost almost everything that I had built over the years. Job. Friends. Reputation. Public goodwill. But I never lost hope. My idealism had let me down”. In another tweet he wrote, “But I had faith in myself. That I would undo the mistakes I had made. That life would give me another chance. A part of me is exhausted with the memory of those 8 months and wants to erase that legacy. Much of it is already gone. Time will mop off the rest I believe”.

“Just thought of sharing that life is beautiful. It is always worth giving ourselves another chance. Setbacks make us stronger. And there is an amazing world beyond the shadows of the past. I turn 39 next month. And I’m really excited to start all over again”.

Now it remains to be seen whether he would be able to perform his duties after his homecoming in the second innings.

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2. The views expressed here are those of the author and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of PGurus.

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