Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir administration on Friday ordered a 15-day inquiry into allegations that senior IAS officer Kumar Rajeev Ranjan abused and threatened a woman colleague during an official meeting, as Chief Minister Omar Abdullah questioned the elected government’s limited control over IAS officers and directed the Chief Secretary to ensure that the junior officer faces no retaliation.
The inquiry, ordered by the General Administration Department (GAD), comes amid mounting pressure for disciplinary action following the circulation of a video showing a heated exchange between Ranjan, Administrative Secretary of the Labour and Employment Department, and Beenish Wani, Assistant Director (Employment), Ganderbal, during a virtual review meeting on Mission YUVA on Wednesday.
Mandeep Kaur, a 2004-batch IAS officer and Commissioner-Secretary to the Housing and Urban Development Department, has been appointed inquiry officer, while Amit Vermani, Additional Secretary in the GAD, will present the case.
The panel has been asked to submit its report within 15 days.
The incident has triggered a wider debate over the treatment of junior officers, workplace dignity and the accountability of senior bureaucrats in Jammu and Kashmir’s Union Territory administration.
In the video circulating on social media, Ranjan is seen repeatedly interrupting Wani as she explains the targets achieved by her office and the role of the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) as a supporting agency.
He allegedly tells her to “shut up” and uses the phrase “bloody shit”.
When Wani objects to the language, Ranjan allegedly responds that he can speak that way because he is her boss.
He then instructs another official to prepare a suspension order and threatens to recommend her dismissal from service, according to accounts of the exchange.
Wani, a 2015-batch Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) officer, had joined the virtual meeting while on sanctioned leave for medical treatment, reports said.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said the conduct visible in the video was, prima facie, inconsistent with the standards expected of a senior IAS officer. He said the subsequent threats against a junior JKAS officer made the matter more serious.
Abdullah said he had taken up the issue in the strongest possible terms with Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo and instructed him to ensure that Wani did not face any retributive action.
The Chief Minister also highlighted the limits of the elected government’s authority over IAS officers in a Union Territory, saying control over them rests with the Lieutenant Governor’s establishment.
“If J&K were a state, the IAS officer seen abusing the young JKAS officer would have been attached to the General Administration Department pending an inquiry,” Abdullah said, adding that the authorities exercising control over IAS officers must ensure that abusive and threatening behaviour is not brushed aside.
The National Commission for Women has taken suo motu cognisance of the video, with chairperson Vijaya Rahatkar writing to Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo seeking verification of the footage, an impartial inquiry and appropriate legal or disciplinary proceedings if the allegations are substantiated.
The commission has sought an action-taken report within seven days and called for safeguards against workplace harassment and victimisation, stressing that women officers are entitled to dignity at work.
The JKAS Officers’ Association has also condemned the alleged intimidation and public humiliation of Wani. Rejecting attempts to describe the video as fabricated or AI-generated, the association said officials present during the meeting had testified to its authenticity. It demanded a public apology from Ranjan and formal misconduct proceedings.
National Conference president Farooq Abdullah called for Ranjan’s removal from Jammu and Kashmir, saying the language allegedly used against a junior colleague was unacceptable and unbecoming of a public servant.
PDP president Mehbooba Mufti urged the Chief Minister to take up the matter directly with the Union government and demand strict action.
In a post on X, she described the alleged conduct as disdainful and referred to separate allegations concerning illegal gun licences against the officer.
Jammu and Kashmir Pradesh Congress Committee president Tariq Karra wrote to Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha seeking a fair, time-bound probe.
He called for examination of the complete meeting recording, protection for Wani against professional retaliation and scrutiny of reported disparaging remarks about the Jammu and Kashmir Public Service Commission.
Lok Sabha MP Aga Syed Ruhullah Mehdi also condemned the incident and warned against any retaliatory action against the woman officer.
The BJP, too, condemned the alleged use of abusive language.
Party spokesperson Altaf Thakur said such behaviour towards junior officers was unacceptable, but also linked the controversy to the implementation of Mission YUVA and accountability for government schemes.
Thakur said officers, regardless of rank, must demonstrate transparency and deliver results, arguing that failures in implementation directly affect young people seeking opportunities through government programmes. He urged bureaucrats to adopt what he called the post-2019 work culture in Jammu and Kashmir.
Senior BJP leader and former Jammu mayor Rajinder Sharma described the incident as a stain on democratic functioning and questioned whether political leadership was doing enough to hold officials accountable. He asked why the Chief Minister could not approach the Lieutenant Governor with his council of ministers to press for stern action.
The Dalit, OBC, Minority and Adivasi (DOMA) Confederation held a protest in Jammu under its president, R K Kalsotra, demanding action against Ranjan and a public apology.
Kalsotra said the alleged remarks amounted to an insult to women and constitutional values. The protesters demanded that the officer apologise publicly, arguing that an incident played out during an official meeting should be addressed openly.
Ranjan was arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation in 2020 in connection with an alleged arms-licence scam involving licences issued on forged documents during his tenure as Deputy Commissioner of Kupwara.
He was suspended by the Jammu and Kashmir administration following the arrest and reinstated in 2021. He has also faced a probe into allegations of disproportionate assets.
Those matters are separate from the present allegations concerning his conduct during the Mission YUVA meeting.
The 15-day inquiry will now examine the incident and determine whether disciplinary action is warranted.
Govt issues guidelines to officers to observe decorum
Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir government on Friday issued guidelines to officers to observe decorum at all levels of administration and to ensure that official interactions are conducted with due courtesy, restraint, dignity and mutual respect, a day after an IAS officer used abusive language with a woman officer.
The government issued a circular with these instructions a day after senior IAS officer Kumar Rajeev Ranjan courted controversy after he allegedly used abusive language against JKAS woman officer Beenish Wani and threatened to recommend her dismissal from service.
The videos of the heated argument, which took place between Ranjan and Assistant Director Wani over the role of the National Rural Livelihood Mission (NRLM) during a review meeting on Mission YUVA flooded social media.
On Friday, the government said that in terms of Rule 3 of the Jammu and Kashmir Government Employees (Conduct) Rules, 1971, read with the other service-specific provisions, all officers and officials are expected to maintain the highest standards of integrity, devotion to duty, discipline and conduct befitting a public servant.
Employees are further expected to maintain professionalism, courtesy and mutual respect in their interactions with seniors, colleagues, subordinate staff and the public, the circular issued by the General Administration Department said.
It said that in view of the foregoing, all employees are enjoined to ensure that official interactions are conducted with due courtesy, restraint, dignity and mutual respect.
“This shall be applicable equally to interactions between superior officers and their subordinates, between officers and officials of different ranks and between subordinate employees and their seniors. Seniority and supervisory authority shall be exercised with responsibility and fairness, while all officers and officials shall extend due regard to lawful directions, established procedures and the responsibilities attached to the offices,” the circular said.
