Cruel Administration led by officer P Selvaganesh

Date: 25/08/2011

Place: Madurai

To

The Chief Commissioner of Income tax, Chennai –I,

Chennai.

Madam,

Sub	Objectionable behavior of Shri P Selvaganesh, Additional Commissioner of Income-tax –  Reg.

On 12.08.2011, I had visited Madurai office to address certain clarification raised by the office of CCIT (CCA), Chennai relating to the VRS which I had opted on 31.05.2011. During the visit I learnt reliably that Shri P Selvaganesh, Additional Commissioner of Income-tax leveled baseless allegations against me, relating to a survey case u/s 133A done on 26.07.2011 by the Range-1, Madurai.  The act of Shri P Selvaganesh, Additional Commissioner of Income-tax has deeply disturbed me again as it highlights the officers inbuilt bias and unfair attitude at workplace. I would like to express boldly my experiences of two years at Madurai as Joint commissioner of Income-tax with Shri P Selvaganesh which will place things in right perspective.

On 26.07.2001, a survey proceeding under the meaning and scope of section u/s 133A of the Income-tax, 1961 was conducted at Madurai in the case of a leading Jeweler. It was reliably learnt that Shri P Selvaganesh telephonically enquired from the Commissioner of Income-tax-II, Madurai that I was the person who was behind the Survey being conducted by the Range Head. When the allegation of Shri P Selvaganesh was replied in negative by the Commissioner of Income-tax, then Shri P Selvaganesh further enquired that he possesses information that I was in Madurai. The Commissioner of Income-tax-II, Madurai expressed since “Hari Rao has already placed resignation then it will not matter where he should be,” and further expressed that Hari Rao was not available in town as Hari Rao would have definitely met if he had visited the town.

The above presumptions of Shri P Selvaganesh have serious implication in handling the official work especially from the desk of Vigilance at a senior position. The vigilance desk must be handled by a responsible person with a clean, fair and impartial attitude. The desk must totally desist and absolutely refrain from witch-hunting as it tarnishes ones career image and has great potential to cause incorrigible loss of prestige when the facts are otherwise. Therefore, the administration in its wisdom will always place people at this desk, who carry impeccable character and integrity. If this is the core philosophy behind the vigilance desk then my present experience encounters me with the truth that the entire philosophy of Vigilance has been totally compromised  rather than being adhered to in my case.

I am going through a tough phase of life as my father is already admitted for bypass surgery at Care Hospital, Banjara. Even on 26.07.2011 I was available at Hyderabad as I was attending my father. In the modern world it is very easy to test the veracity of one’s presence as each mobile call has locator’s connected to a tower from operator’s network, where the signal get transmitted inward or outward. At this juncture of life if a senior person from administration from Chennai makes a roving enquiry about me by leveling serious charges on one’s integrity and character then such behavior needs to get exposed as it is working against interest of the organization. This has also brought me to a point where I would like to express certain truths relating to Shri P Selvaganesh and my personal experience of working in the South Tamilnadu Charge for almost two years, which administration must know about it.

I was always an officer with outstanding achievements ever since I joined the Indian Revenue Service on 20.09.1999. In the year 2006-07 after being rated as OUTSTANDING by the Reporting Officer, the Reviewing Officer for reasons best known to him attempted to spoil my ACR by converting it to ADVERSE. The senior officers, Shri D K Jha, Additional Commissioner who was the main cause for troubling me behind the scene is now charge sheeted by CBI in a destruction of evidence case, whereas the role of Shri A K Agarwal, CIT, the Reviewing Officer, was also taken  where the senior officer was grilled by the agency. Though the comment got expunged but I got disillusioned from the Indian Revenue Service and I placed my resignation from the post of Deputy Commissioner of Income-tax for the first time on 19.06.2008 and went on long leave.

After I got promotion, my friends and seniors on the job and the family expressed that I must give a try to the new position as the same atmosphere may not prevail. Hence on 21.07.2009 I joined the Madurai charge as Joint Commissioner of Income-tax. After assuming the charge I brought to the knowledge of Shri P Selvaganesh, who was holding the desk of headquarters, the facts about my earlier life as I found that lot of rumors were being spread about me. Several incidences at the job disillusioned me again and I wrote several letters to administration about it but there was no line of reply addressing my concerns.

I was holding additional charges of Tirunelveli and Tuticorin and used to regularly visit the charges personally which involved a travel of almost 8000-10000 Km per month. During this journey I realized several truths about Shri P Selvaganesh. I found the officer interfering without jurisdiction in several assessment/survey cases by citing the name of senior politicians. The officer also put me under undue pressure to take severe action against Arul, the then DCIT when I was on leave at Hyderabad, citing that the CBDT has already received the messages about his wrong doing.

Subsequently, I found that Shri P Selvaganesh has lot of personal interest in the region of South Tamilnadu and is close to many politicians. Shri P Selvaganesh held the charge of Headquarters and was close to all the CCIT’s and senior officers. By virtue of the position the officer wielded lot of power and had capabilities to make/tarnish anybody’s image depending upon whether one is toeing his line or not. Surprisingly, in the mid of 2010, Shri P Selvaganesh was removed from the Headquarters and placed in the TDS charge.

In the normal functioning of organization, it is a known practice that no one is posted middle of the year suddenly from Headquarters to TDS as it is generally not considered as a healthy posting. The whisper in the corridor’s suggest that evidence against Shri P Selvaganesh was found in a survey case relating to a builder that he had purchased a premium property as a flat in Chetpet, at Chennai by under invoicing which were not matching to the known source of income, the officer was involved in 2G Spectrum case and CBI has evidence about it, the officer has made indirect investment in some huge mall which has come in the region of Puliyampatti, near Madurai...

All the above information I brought into the light is not to criticize  or victimize but only to highlight that Shri P Selvaganesh is an officer who himself has been alleged of so many wrong doing, can he hold the desk of Vigilance? A person who was suddenly removed from the vigilance and is again being given the assignment of vigilance just two months back may raise eyebrows on the functioning of present administration. It is likelihood that Shri P Selvaganesh may do everything not only to clean himself but again revert back to the method of settling scores with persons not palatable to his interests.

So now, I take strong objections to the behavior of Shri P Selvaganesh because of the following reasons:-

1.     If I had to involve directly or indirectly to conduct a Survey, then why I need to place resignation because it is very easy to stay in the region by just giving a consent to the administration as there are very few officers who show willingness to work in the moffusil area. Administration need to compare the results of the region in terms of achievements which was prior to me and during my tenure.

2.     Expressing an opinion that the present Joint Commissioner is a remote control and doing survey and acting on my instructions is a derogatory allegation from the desk of vigilance as the opinion Shri P Selvaganesh, undermines the  interest of a rational, neutral and impartial bureaucracy.

3.     Checking my whereabouts and making presumption that I am available at Madurai from the desk of vigilance clearly highlights the attitude of Shri P Selvaganesh doing witch hunting. Now, I have reason to believe that Shri P Selvaganesh is trying to fix me for reasons best known to him. This creates a material basis that Shri P Selvaganesh is in the mood to harass me.

Every individual is innocent till it’s proven otherwise, but Shri P Selvaganesh attitude despite holding a responsible and crucial desk raises lot of concerns as what type of information the officer has been feeding about me to the senior officers. Though I have worked in the Tamilnadu charge for more than two years but I have never come and met any senior officers in Chennai till date. With this set of fact I have reason to believe that Shri P Selvaganesh has been disseminating lot of misinformation about me to pursue his self interest. Very recently I found that Shri D Ravindra, CCIT carried lot of misinformation about me which I brought to the knowledge of administration on 28.03.2011 and now I can come to a conclusion that everything was the handiwork of Shri P Selvaganesh. It very important for me to raise the following questions:-

1.     Is the present administration aware of the rumors about Shri P Selvaganesh? If “yes”, then what actions are being pursued by the administration against the officer?

2.     What is the basis of information for Shri P Selvaganesh, which led to enquiring about me?

3.     What is the basis for Shri P Selvaganesh to come to a conclusion that the present Office of Joint Commissioner is the remote control and I am the de-facto officer?

4.     Why Shri P Selvaganesh contacted the senior officer when the Survey was in progress in Madurai Region? Does the act of officer mean that the officer has any personal interest in the case?

5.     Is the official inquiry needed against the officer to find whether or not Shri P Selvaganesh has been directly/indirectly interfering in sensitive cases by misusing his offices for personal gains?

6.     Is it the right and proper way from the desk of vigilance to deal a matter relating to a officer who is pleading from exiting an envious job which is generally a rarest of the rare case?

I am again exposed to uncomfortable position at a very wrong time especially when I am going through a tough phase because of my father’s health. Getting acquainted with the attitude of Shri P Selvaganesh towards me at this juncture just adds salt to injury. At this moment I can only request the administration that I am again disillusioned with the Indian Revenue Service. I also request the administration at Chennai to take urgent steps in addressing my concerns which will also help in maintaining the morale of the entire work force which can be kept at peak for the effective functioning of the organization.

Since, I have already opted for VRS and the administration has raised certain objections regarding it, I am waiting for a line of reply in my case. If the problem still persists then rather than VRS I will place my resignation so that I can come out gracefully from the Indian Revenue Service. I request the administration again to help me in coming out from the service gracefully by dealing my case for vigilance clearance by any other person other than Shri P Selvaganesh.

Thanking you.

        Yours faithfully,

                                                                                                                   Sd/-

                                                                                                        (S.S. HARI RAO)

   Joint Commissioner of Income tax

    Senior AR, ITAT, Chennai (UOP)

CC to:-

1.     The Chief Vigilance Commissioner, New Delhi

2.     The Chairman, Central Board of Direct Taxes, New Delhi

3.     The Director-General of Income-tax (Vigilance), New Delhi

4.     The Director of Income-tax (Vigilance -South), Chennai

5.     The Chief Commissioner of Income-tax, Madurai

6.     The Commissioner of Income-tax - II, Madurai 

7.     The Commissioner of Income-tax – ITAT, Chennai.