Elements of Team Vohra

SAHIL RASGOTRA

JAMMU: A super cop credited with ending the 3-decade-long dreaded era of the notorious brigand, dacoit, and sandalwood smuggler Veerappan- Vijay Kumar, a well-grounded bureaucrat known more for his political gray matter- Bharat Bhushan Vyas, and an MBA graduate from London having personal and professional relations with the noted economist who served India as a Prime Minister- B V R Subramanyam are the initial elements of Team Vohra .
With Governor Narinder Nath Vohra set to rule the state for the fourth time in last 10 years, a team of three high-profile officers will be helping him in pushing towards normalcy, the volatile- politically and otherwise- Jammu and Kashmir over the next few months.
Barely hours after imposition of Governor’s Rule, New Delhi was prompt in posting to J&K the senior IAS officer B V R Subrahmanyam, who woke up in Raipur this morning as Additional Chief Secretary (Home) of Chhattisgarh but went to bed as new Chief Secretary of Jammu and Kashmir.
Serving his third extended term, B B Vyas, whose formal appointment was yet to be approved by the state cabinet, was consequently posted as one of the two Advisors to the Governor, the other being the retired IPS officer Vijay Kumar, who only a week before completed his tenure as Senior Security Advisor in Union Ministry of Home Affairs on Naxal issues. His rather non-distinctive sounding name might fool many at first; however, his CV enumerates heading the Special Task Force of Tamil Nadu that was involved in the death of the infamous Sandalwood smuggler Veerappan during Operation Cocoon of 2004.

Each of these officers- distinctive in their natives and natures- has many things going for them to be brought together in Jammu and Kashmir.

B B Vyas
Days before his second extended term as Chief Secretary of state was to expire on May 31, New Delhi went an extra mile, making amendments in All India Services Act, 1951, in order to pave way for Vyas to continue as the top-most bureaucrat of the Jammu and Kashmir for yet another year.
However, his formal appointment was still hanging in balance as the state cabinet which was to ratify his extended term- third since November 2017 when he was scheduled to superannuate-could never meet.
A 1986-batch IAS officer, Vyas was this evening appointed as Advisor to Vohra. This was not his first such experience with Vohra, however. Soon after Vohra set his foot in state after Amarnath land row rocked Jammu region in 2008, Vyas had worked closely with Vohra as his principal secretary for a period of six months during the governor rule.
The crisis had hit the state a couple of years later and Vyas’s importance was acknowledged once again, this time by then-Chief Minister Omar Abdullah who had appointed him as his principal secretary, as a part of crisis management oriented massive reshuffle in Omar administration. Vyas continued in this position till the end of Omar dispensation and in what was a rare occurrence in state’s volatile political scenario, was asked to continue as Chief Minister’s principal secretary, by Omar’s political rival and successor, Late Mufti Mohammad Syed.
There was no going back for Vyas from there as he continued as Mehbooba Mufti’s principal secretary till April last year, before he was elevated as Chief Secretary taking over from B R Sharma who later proceeded on central deputation, even when there were two officers- KB Aggarwal and Pramod Jain- senior to him.
Besides politicians, Vyas has remained Governor’s favourite officer too, which can be gauged from many happenings in recent past. Vyas’s case is exceptional by the fact that he is the only serving bureaucrat to be on Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board. When it was uncertain if Vyas will get an extension as Chief Secretary, he was appointed at a senior position in Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Hospital.
Essentially a political brain, Vyas’s appointment as Vohra’s advisor gains utmost significance, especially in the absence of a political dispensation.

VIJAY KUMAR
Among the two bureaucrats, the odd-man is Vijay Kumar, a retired official of Indian Police Services, who made the impossible possible when he headed the task force operation, Operation Cocoon in 2004 that killed dreaded sandalwood smuggler-cum- brigand and dacoit, who ruled for nearly 30 years in the scrub lands and forests in the states of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
An officer of 1975-batch, Kumar has served in Jammu and Kashmir before. He was posted as the Inspector General, Border Security Force (BSF) Srinagar from 1998 to 2000 during the peak of militancy. He also served as IG(Operations), BSF before being recalled to the state to head the operations to hunt the forest brigand Veerapan.
Presently serving as Senior Security Advisor, Union Ministry of Home Affairs, Kumar’s appointment as the advisor to Governor Vohra is seen as the Centre’s resolve to intensify the Operation All Out in Kashmir against the terrorists. While the voices are growing shriller for a strong offensive the insurgents in the Valley, someone of Kumar’s stature and experience may just be the man needed for job.
The fact that he has served as the Director-general of Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF)—the paramilitary force dominating the terrorism in Kashmir- from 2010 to 2012 will prove to be another bonus.

B V R Subramanyam
Taking realms from Vyas as the top-most bureaucrat of the state will be B V R Subramanyam, considered one of the finest officers of IAS. Within an hour of imposition of Governor’s rule in Jammu and Kashmir, the Prime Minister-led Cabinet Committee on Appointments posted Subrahmanyam- presently posted as Additional Chief Secretary, Home, in Chhattisgarh- to the state. On Wednesday evening, he was appointed as the new Chief Secretary of the state.
Affectionately called ‘Subbu’ by his colleagues, the 55-year old has a long-list of achievements in his stride, and is known as someone to take up new challenges, openly. Having served as Private Secretary of the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh from 2004 to 2008, this 1987-batch officer was until Wednesday noon fighting Naxalites in Chhattisgarh.
Earlier in his career, Subramanyam, considered an expert in internal security matters, has served as a Private Secretary to Dr. Manmohan Singh, and spent almost ten years in the PMO. He also worked with the World Bank during June 2008 and September 2011.
An MBA graduate from London Business School, he joined the Manmohan Singh-led PMO in March 2012 again as a Joint Secretary and continued until March 2015 when Dr. T V Swaminathan replaced him in the Narendra Modi era.
Before what happened on Wednesday happened, the political circles were rife that Subrahmanyam may return to the PMO. Considered very close to Pulok Chatterji and Dr. Manmohan SIngh, his appointment in the PMO may have helped establish a bridge between the two eras; however, in his new job, all eyes would be on him as he takes over in what is one of the most difficult states in the country to administer.