Date: 02.12.2018
Place: Bangalore
To,
Shri
K V Chowdary, IRS
The
Chief Vigilance Commissioner
New
Delhi,
Respected
Sir,
Sub: Restoring the Dignity & Honour of IRS
Officer to exit gracefully from service as a Civil Servant -Reg.
Ref: CVC OM No. 015/ITX/011/301272
dated 03.12.2015
Ref: My letters dated
26.11.2018, 28.11.2018 & 01.12.2018
When I walked into Unit-II
(Investigation), Bangalore in the year 2001, met you in chamber for a search
action, I saw in you a towering personality & a legend in IRS. I took you
immediately as my role model without any hitch. This was an earnest feeling of
a probationer, with bubbling enthusiasm, who joined fresh from NADT in field after
passing out, as an outstanding officer, in the year 2001.
Furthermore, it’s a feather in the cap
for IRS fraternity, that you are the first non-IAS civil servant to occupy this
prestigious post. The place where you have reached, would have been distant
dream if you were an innocent officer, trapped like me and led a life for a
decade with a “vigilance tag.”
This is an introduction to an officer
from IRS, who appeared for more than
fifty search actions in the first year of joining the field, in addition to
substantive charge, later participated in more
than two hundred search actions before the year 2005. I feel proud and
contended that in my times, I too was
one of the most humble, affable,
celebrated, unblemished outstanding IRS officer. And today I am dragged and
being beaten down by authorities from top to bottom, who not only lack a human
heart but have repeatedly failed in discharging their official &
fundamental duties.
Sir, though
I knew you personally and shared a good relationship, I had never approached
you for any help or a personal favour, even when you were the Member CBDT. I have
also never met Shri S M Nigam, the then DGIT(Vig)/CVO for help or any favour,
who was instead our course director while probation with whom I had a very good
relationship with him too. Why? Because I firmly believed that I have done no wrong,
and never felt I need a favour from any
of my known acquaintances. Instead, I had
complete faith in the institutional mechanism led by CBDT, which will give
me a fair chance to prove my innocence. But over a decade of experience I can
say that CBDT and its vigilance
mechanism have failed, not only with inordinate delays but also lacks muscle to
nail the guilty. Instead, it knows how to punish an innocent which is quite
contrary to its fundamental duty.
The above exercise
is being done so as to make you aware, how I was harassed and victimised under CBDT
administration for more than a decade. It definitely made an innocent &
hardworking outstanding officer to get disillusioned from Indian Revenue Service,
and go on an unauthorised leave for more than six years, in three spells, and then
search for a new professional life at the age 42.
The above photos are the evidence of my life as an
innovator where I became the one and
only civil servant in entire bureaucracy to win GOLD Medal from the
Department of Science and Technology-Lockheed Martin’ India Innovation Growth
Programme - GOLD Medal (2015), National and Global Winner in UNIDO-MSME-GEF Global
Cleantech Innovation Programme – 2015. I have won several
other medals including international acclaim for innovation in Energy Efficient
Gas Fuel Burner System. Today, I am one of the leading thermodynamics gas fuel
scientists on radiant heat. The present gas fuel burner system has a thermal
efficiency under IS 14612 between 36-45%, whereas my innovation has created a
new world record by raising it between 65-68.9%.
The above photos are very important not because
of my personal achievement but for the below reasons:
·
It
has happened during the period of
victimisation where I did not have any option but to go on unauthorised
leave after being disillusioned from IRS and start life from scratch at the age of 42.
·
The
achievement is not only important because I am the one and only CIVIL SERVANT,
to achieve this feat in bureaucratic history in India till date, but it is even
more important because I am a commerce
student and not an engineer, who is reversing the gas fuel mechanism and
creating standards in Radiant Heat mechanism across gas fuel for BIS, which the
world can follow.
·
You
may also note that when I could achieve this feat in my most horrifying
condition in a totally unknown terrain, then imagine where I could have taken my
career in Income-tax Department if I had its support.
·
After
starting life afresh, I gave up all the benefit of reservation as Scheduled
Caste not only for me but for my entire family and entered the competitive
world of innovation as a common man.
·
Sir,
you may find difficulty in recognising my photo with Hon’ble PM, S&T
Minister and the India UN Head as I am not a complete fit man as I used to be.
I had touched the weight of 136 Kg and now I am slowly coming down. I am now convinced
that weight is just the external manifestation of what one is carrying in one’s
own mind.
Sir, I am approaching you from the following position to
restore my dignity and honour as an IRS officer, who is desperately waiting to
leave the service gracefully and contribute to the field of science on radiant
heat through gas fuel and bring laurels to India :-
·
Leader
of the CVC
·
Erstwhile
member of CBDT
·
IRS
Service camaraderie
·
A
government servant
·
A
citizen of India
Sir, I request you to personally read my material,
as mentioned in the subject, so that you
will be aware that the Commission was
kept in dark all along by the DGIT/CVO & the real truth about my vigilance
proceeding. If the commission was aware of the real truth, I am sure that
even the Commission in their distant dream would not initiated major penalty in my case. The entire machinery under CBDT including the
vigilance machinery acting as CVO failed in their fundamental duty in bringing
out the truth before you till date. It is only when I felt that justice is
not possible to get within their vigilance proceeding framework, I decided to go
public as my life was already dragged to road over a decade. So, let me start from
the beginning, the launch of action from your desk for having initiated major
penalty against me.
The CVC initiated major penalty in my
case based on the DGIT/CVO findings on underassessment. The entire case vest
only on the Article of Charge-1. The
allegation and truth of the case is as under:
Allegation by the DGIT/CVO: The original income of H R Ravichandra
as an individual, for the assessment period 2000-01 to AY 2003-04, was Rs. 67,75,690/-. The search assessment was
done @ Rs. 49,06,370/- which led to a Revenue
Loss of Rs. 18,63920. The search assessment was done in the hands of THREE partnership firm ( i) M/s Royal
Shelters, ii) M/s Royal Park Residency iii) Royal Habitat.
The truth: The original income of H R
Ravichandra as an individual, for the assessment period 2000-01 to AY 2003-04, was Rs. 67,75,690/-. The search assessment was
done @ Rs. 77,41,198/- which led to a Revenue
Gain of Rs. 31,47,213 (Additional Tax @ Rs.6,85,462 + 234 ABC Interest @ Rs. 24,61,751).
The search assessment was done in the hands of FIVE partnerships (i) M/s
Royal Shelters, ii) M/s Royal Park Residency iii) Royal Habitat iv) M/s R S
Constructions, and v) M/s R S Developers,
Sir, you may be in the state of shock and disbelief
that “how come this simple truth was not
visible to the CBDT vigilance machinery before launching a full scale action
against me over a decade?”
Sir this fact the DGIT(Vig)/CVO has failed to put before you while initiating the
major penalty in my case. Till date, the CVO used the entire machinery against
me for more than a decade and were part of a deliberate total cover up operation. What other truths were hidden
from you are as under:-
1. A group of IRS officers spoiled my ACR 2006-07 by orchestering an
“ADVERSE” rating. I got it expunged through a detailed representation bringing
all kinds of bias against me despite doing excellent work.
2. The vigilance proceedings were created by the same group of officers
when they did not succeed in spoiling my ACR. I pleaded before the DGIT(Inv),
Bangalore, but did not get any help to protect an innocent officer.
3. The DGIT(Vig)/CVO sought additional time of 7 ½ years from the
Commission and failed to discover truth
despite having all the search assessment folders done by me.
4. Subsequently, the DGIT(Vig)/CVO used a group of IRS
officer with vested interest as prosecution witnesses and then created case
against me for “initiating major penalty.” The DGIT (Vig)/CVO is also aware
about the questionable integrity of some of the Prosecution Witnesses.
5. Under the leadership of the
DGIT(Vig)/CVO, the vigilance proceedings started in the year 2017. The Inquiry officer not only displayed bias
during the vigilance proceedings but rejected four times the supply of defense
documents to the Charged officer to prove his innocence. The rejection was
against the procedure as mentioned in the Vigilance Manual for conducting the
fair vigilance proceedings.
6. The Charged officer approached
the DGIT/CVO(Vig) for the change of Inquiry officer for having displayed
contempt towards not only the rule based proceedings but also to the judgement
of the Apex Court. The DGIT/CVO rejected
both, the supply of defense document and the change in Inquiry officer, and
then directed me to cooperate to complete the proceedings at the earliest.
Sir, with above set of acts of the CVO, I lost
complete faith in the vigilance proceedings led by DGIT(Vig)/CVO who was
failing repeatedly by discharging his fundamental duty. It is only when I
realised that the DGIT(Vig)/CVO is the
prime conduit in the creation of false case against me then it is
impossible for him to provide justice through fair means of law. It is at this
juncture, I decided never to appear
before the machinery led by the DGIT/CVO.
Sir, now you can feel that, rising in ranks as a CVC for
you, would not have been possible if you had led life in my skin, flesh and
blood. I want you to go through my letters which speaks in detail the experience of personal humiliation I faced from
senior officers, while living life with a “Vigilance Tag”. This exercise will enable you to
become empathical by feeling highest degree of pain, which I and my family underwent
for the past decade.
Sir,
the incidents, I faced are totally unfathomable in any civilised society by
learned men. But this is not a story of an
uneducated group of men but the
story of Indian Revenue Service Officers who were selected & appointed by
none other than “The President of India” to uphold the values of Indian
Constitution. There is a serious HUMAN RELATIONSHIP ISSUE in some portion
of IRS system from top to bottom as it stands totally diseased and rotten. It
is the right time CBDT machinery needs cleaning up.
Sir,
by now you would have realised that every authority dealing with my case knew
the fact from the beginning but lacked courage to accept the committing of
crime. Rather than undoing the wrong, everyone was involved in covering up
facts and burying me alive.
Sir,
I humbly request you to deal this classic
and rare case directly through a “Special
Officer”. The Special Officer shall inquire into this case to find the
truth through an impartial inquiry. Having been tormented for a decade by
bureaucratic apathy, misuse and abuse of power, I have come before you the
following expectation in the interest of equity and justice:-.
a.
Review the “initiation of major penalty” if the
primary Article of Charge -1 levelled against the charged officer is found to
be false.
b.
Bring the total background of this case from the
year 2006-07 to know how the witch-hunting was planned and executed.
c.
Action against officers down the line by fixing the
responsibility for having created a false charge.
d.
Look into the whistle blower’s letter written to
The DGIT (Inv) F.No. JC-1/Range-III/2009-10 dated 30.07.2009
e.
When the
Special Officer findings proves the innocence of the charged officer, then
issue an apology letter to the charged officer from the DGIT(Vig)/CVO for
dereliction of their responsibility for having created a false vigilance
proceeding.
Furthermore,
after a fair inquiry and establishing the crimes in my case, the CBDT to be directed
to restore the dignity and honour of a civil servant within a specific time
frame:-
1)
Apology letter from the respective administrative
authorities for dereliction of their responsibility in protecting an innocent
officer.
2)
Cleaning up of the ACR from the year 2006-07 till
date, fixing the pay, promotions and other benefits with my batch, and then
giving me opportunity to exit gracefully from the Indian Revenue Service.
I
have come before you with great amount of hope & pride. I treat this as the
last and only chance where me and my family can get back to life as normal
Indian citizens. I will be very happy if you give me personal audience for the
sake of old times by calling me at +91 7671020900.
But
still I ask a simple question to you before leaving “When will this injustice stop? Will I ever get justice by CVC under
your leadership”?
Thanking you.
Yours
faithfully,
Sd/-
(Sanghi Sri Hari Rao)
CC to:-
1. The
Hon’ble Prime Minister of India, New Delhi
2. The
Hon’ble Finance Minister of India. New Delhi
3. The
Chairman, CBDT, New Delhi.
4. The
Member (Personnel & Vigilance), New Delhi
5. The
Director General Income-tax (Vigilance), New Delhi.
6. The
Additional Director-General Income-tax (Vigilance)(South), Chennai.
7. The
Principle Chief Commissioner of Income-tax, Bangalore-I.
8. The
Director General Income-tax (Investigation), Bangalore,
9. The
Addl. CIT (Vigilance), Bangalore
10. The
Inquiry Officer, CIT (A)-3, Bangalore
11. The
Presenting Officer, the DCIT Central Circle 2(2) Bangalore.
