PRINCIPAL SECRETARY REMOVED AND TRANSFERRED TO A POST WITH NO WORK

PRINCIPAL SECRETARY REMOVED AND TRANSFERRED TO A POST WITH NO WORK

29-APRIL-ENG 5

RAJIV NAYAN AGRAWAL

PATNA------------------------"Operation Vijay Sinha" continues within the new government formed by Samrat Chaudhary in Bihar. Previously, Vijay Sinha's orders—which had come down hard on striking revenue employees—were overturned. Now, a second major decision has been taken: CK Anil, the no-nonsense Principal Secretary of the Revenue and Land Reforms Department, has been removed from his post.

CK Anil—a strict IAS officer who was actively engaged in reforming the Revenue and Land Reforms Department, widely regarded as the most corrupt department in Bihar—has been transferred to a position where he will have absolutely no work to do. He has been appointed as an Advisor to the Planning Board. It is worth noting that the Planning Board is a department within the Bihar government where virtually no work has been undertaken for over a decade; CK Anil is now set to spend his time in this very department.

While removing CK Anil, the Bihar government has handed over the charge of Principal Secretary of the Revenue and Land Reforms Department to IAS officer Jai Singh. He was already serving as a Secretary within this same department.

According to discussions circulating in political corridors, the decision to send CK Anil to the "cold storage" is an integral part of the ongoing "Operation Vijay Sinha" within Bihar's new government. It is pertinent to recall that during the previous administration, the then Deputy Chief Minister, Vijay Kumar Sinha, had launched a campaign to reform the Revenue and Land Reforms Department. CK Anil, the department's Principal Secretary at the time, had actively and enthusiastically supported this reform drive.

Following the installation of the new government in Bihar, a systematic process of overturning Vijay Sinha's decisions regarding the Revenue and Land Reforms Department began. While serving as Deputy Chief Minister, Vijay Sinha had issued directives to suspend—on a massive scale—the notoriously recalcitrant revenue employees who had been on strike for months. Consequently, more than 200 revenue employees across the state were suspended. However, after the formation of the new government in Bihar, Vijay Sinha's orders were reversed.

The Samrat government overturned the orders to suspend the striking employees. However, the government suffered a major embarrassment when, despite the orders to revoke the suspensions, the striking employees still refused to return to work. On the contrary, the message conveyed to the public was that the government has set out to shield corrupt revenue officials. The common people of Bihar still view revenue officials as the very epitome of corruption.

Now, the question arises: why did the axe fall upon C.K. Anil, the Principal Secretary of the Department of Revenue and Land Reforms? The matter is intriguing. In fact, after the NDA government was formed following the 2025 Assembly elections, Vijay Sinha was entrusted with the highly notorious Department of Revenue and Land Reforms.

Within that administration, a secondary strategy was devised to "handle" Vijay Kumar Sinha. C.K. Anil—an IAS officer widely regarded as being of a distinct and unconventional mold—was appointed as the Principal Secretary of the Department of Revenue and Land Reforms. The probable intent was that Vijay Sinha would remain preoccupied with managing his Principal Secretary, C.K. Anil, while the department's operations continued to languish.

However, the entire scenario took an unexpected turn. Joining forces with his Principal Secretary, C.K. Anil, Vijay Sinha launched an "Operation Clean" within the department. The duo created such an atmosphere that, alongside the general public, even leaders of opposition parties began singing the praises of Vijay Kumar Sinha.

Yet, the current reality is that Vijay Kumar Sinha was the first to be ousted from the Department of Revenue and Land Reforms. Now, C.K. Anil, too, has been removed. Perhaps the government intends to send a message that, within the Department of Revenue and Land Reforms, things will proceed exactly as they have for decades.