Arguing that “the last decade has seen a systematic pattern of attacking, weakening and suppressing our autonomous institutions by the ruling party”, Kharge urged the bureaucracy to “follow the Constitution, perform its duties and serve the nation without fear, favour and ill-will towards anyone”.
“Fear no one. Do not succumb to any unconstitutional methods. Fear no one and discharge your duties on the basis of merit on this counting day. We owe future generations a vibrant democracy and a long-lasting Constitution written by the makers of modern India,” he said.
Full text of the letter
An appeal to all civil servants and officials
My dear respected members of the bureaucracy, our civil servants and officials,
I am writing to you in my capacity as the Leader of the Opposition (Rajya Sabha) and Speaker of the Lok Sabha. Indian National CongressThe elections for the 18th Lok Sabha have concluded and the counting of votes will take place tomorrow, June 4, 2024.
I would like to congratulate the Election Commission of India, the Central Armed Forces, the police of various States, civil servants, District Collectors, volunteers and each one of you who were involved in accomplishing this huge and historic task.
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, our inspiration and India’s first Home Minister, called civil servants the “steel frame of India”. The people of India know very well that it is the Indian National Congress that established many institutions on the basis of the Constitution of India, laid their solid foundation and created the mechanism for their independence.
Independence of institutions is paramount, as every civil servant takes an oath to the Constitution that he will “faithfully and conscientiously discharge his duties and deal with all manner of people without fear or favour, affection or ill-will in accordance with the Constitution and the law”. In this spirit we expect every bureaucrat and officer – from the top to the bottom of the hierarchy, to discharge his duties in accordance with the spirit of the Constitution, without succumbing to any pressure, threat, coercion or intimidation, whether from the ruling party/coalition or the opposition party/coalition.
It is important to underline the fact that the Congress Party not only laid the framework of strong governance through the Constitution drafted by our inspirational founding fathers like Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Dr. BR Ambedkar, Dr. Rajendra Prasad, Maulana Azad, Sarojini Naidu and countless others, but also ensured affirmative action by giving representation to the marginalised in our autonomous institutions, bureaucracy and civil society.
The last decade has seen a systematic pattern of attacking, undermining and suppressing our autonomous institutions by the ruling party. As a result, India’s democratic values are being damaged. There is a widespread tendency to turn India into a regimental dictatorship. We are increasingly seeing some institutions giving up their independence and shamelessly following the dictates of the ruling party. Some have completely adopted their style of communication, their way of functioning and in some cases even their political rhetoric. This is not their fault. With the use of brute force, intimidation, coercive mechanisms and misuse of agencies, this tendency to bow down to power has become a way of their short-term survival. However, India’s Constitution and democracy have been casualties in this disgrace.
The ‘will of the people’ is supreme, and the people want the Indian bureaucracy to revert to the same ‘steel structure of India’ envisioned by Sardar Patel – Teflon-coated by our strong constitutional principles that have stood the test of time.
The Indian National Congress now urges the entire bureaucracy to abide by the Constitution, perform their duties and serve the nation without fear, favour and ill-will towards anyone. Fear none. Do not succumb to any unconstitutional means. Fear none and discharge your duties on the basis of merit on this counting day. We owe future generations a vibrant democracy and a long-lasting Constitution written by the makers of modern India.
I extend my best wishes to all of you in the hope that the character of India remains truly democratic, and expect that our eternal ideals of the Constitution remain intact.
