Govt Orders Probe Against Shah Faesal For ‘Rapistan’ Tweet 

“Rape is not part of government policy that criticism of rape would mean criticism of government policy and invite action. If it’s so then I plead guilty”

SRINAGAR — A departmental inquiry has been initiated against 2010 batch IAS topper Shah Faesal for an April 22 tweet which according to the department of personnel and training, Government of India was “unbecoming” of a public servant.

A letter that he said he received by email on Tuesday, states “The department of personnel and training, Government of India, a copy of communication along with its enclosures, in which several references have been made by you in which contents are prima facie in contravention of the extant provisions of all India services (service rules).”

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The letter states that the Government of India has asked the department of the J&K General Administration Department to initiate an inquiry into Faisal’s tweets, as he “allegedly failed to maintain absolute honesty and integrity” in the discharge of his official duty “and thus acted in a manner unbecoming of a public servant.”

Back in April when the IAS officer had put out the tweet, Mr Faesal had drawn a sharp reaction from some people who saw the reference to “Rapistan” as a reference to India and a contrast to Pakistan.

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The tweet and the reaction had come against the backdrop of the outrage over the gang-rape and murder of a Muslim nomad child in Kathua near Jammu and support rallies taken out against the arrest of accused by the Hindu right wing groups led by two BJP ministers.

Shah Faesal, according to the Indian Express said that “It’s nothing but bureaucratic over-enthusiasm. These are people who are used to the most primitive interpretation of the service rules, people who don’t understand the spirit of times we are living in.”

He added that as an officer “I don’t think this warrants any action. Rape is not part of government policy that criticism of rape would mean criticism of government policy and invite action. If it’s so then I plead guilty.”

Sharing the notice of inquiry on Twitter, the former Managing Director of J&K State Power Development Corporation said, “Love letter from my boss for my sarcastic tweet against rape-culture in South Asia. The Irony here is that service rules with a colonial spirit are invoked in a democratic India to stifle the freedom of conscience. I’m sharing this to underscore the need for a rule change.”

He is currently on leave from the state government and is on a Fulbright scholarship to the US. Faesal was the first Kashmiri Muslim to top the UPSC exam.

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