J&K Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha Fires Two More Employees For Terror Links

The Jammu and Kashmir government, led by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, dismissed two employees, Abdul Rehman Naika and Zahir Abbas, over alleged terror links.

Srinagar: The Jammu and Kashmir government, led by Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, on Friday dismissed two employees over alleged terror links. In separate orders, L-G Sinha terminated Abdul Rehman Naika, a pharmacist, and Zahir Abbas, a teacher.

"The Lieutenant Governor (Manoj Sinha) is satisfied, after considering the facts and circumstances of the case and based on the information available, that the activities of Zahir Abbas, a teacher in the School Education Department, the son of Irshad Ahmad, a resident of Badhat Saroor, Kishtwar, warrant his dismissal from service," read an order issued by the Commissioner Secretary to the J&K Government's General Administration Department.

The order further stated, "The Lieutenant Governor is satisfied under sub-clause (c) of the proviso to clause (2) of Article 311 of the Constitution of India that, in the interest of the security of the state, it is not expedient to hold an inquiry in the case of Zahir Abbas. Accordingly, the Lieutenant Governor hereby dismisses Zahir Abbas from service with immediate effect."

An order issued by the Commissioner Secretary to the J&K Government's General Administration Department. (ETV Bharat)

In a similar worded order, the Lieutenant Governor also dismissed Abdul Rehman Naika, a pharmacist in the Health and Medical Education Department, the son of Mohd Assan Naika, a resident of Qasba Devsar, Kulgam, with immediate effect. The spree of dismissals of government employees comes in the aftermath of the abrogation of Article 370, which revoked the Special Status of the erstwhile Jammu and Kashmir state on August 5, 2019.

An order issued by the Commissioner Secretary to the J&K Government's General Administration Department. (ETV Bharat)

In July 2020, the LG Sinha-led administration constituted a committee (vide Government Order No. 738-JK(GAD) of 2020) to scrutinise the credentials of government employees allegedly involved in “anti-national activities.” The government claims that such employees’ activities had come under the “adverse notice of law enforcement and intelligence agencies, as they were found involved in activities prejudicial to the security of the State.”

According to official statistics, at least 90 government employees, including doctors, teachers, and policemen, have been dismissed as part of efforts to dismantle the militancy ecosystem.