Punjab Elections 2022: Fielded by BJP against PCC chief Navjot Singh Sidhu, IAS officer Jagmohan Singh Raju takes VRS

Jagmohan Singh Raju, a Tamil Nadu cadre IAS officer who took voluntary retirement from service on Thursday, and was fielded by the BJP against Punjab Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu from Amritsar East Assembly seat, had accused a top official in the Prime Minister’s Office of caste bias.

Raju, who was the Chief Resident Commissioner of Tamil Nadu House in New Delhi, had written to the DMK Government on January 25 seeking voluntary retirement and the State approved of the same within two days. He had also written a book ‘Ramrajya: The People’s Welfare State’ while in service.

While as an IAS officer he maintained a low profile, Raju, who belonged to the Scheduled Caste, hogged headlines in 2019 when he approached the Virugambakkam Police Station in Chennai with a 13-page complaint accusing then Additional Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister, P K Mishra, and three other senior civil servants of thwarting his career growth due to “caste bias.” He had sought registration of a First Information Report against Mishra and others under provisions of the Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

The 1985-batch IAS officer had alleged: “The agenda of caste-based discrimination against me has succeeded, and will continue to cause me irreparable stigma and mental torture and prejudice at workplace and society until urgent action is taken against these persons. The similarities in approach (of Mishra and three DoPT officials) make me suspect that there is a larger conspiracy afoot to perpetuate such caste-based discrimination against me.”

The FIR was not registered by the police. Following this Raju had approached the National Commission for Scheduled Caste on the issue, which asked the police to submit facts related to the case to it.

Raju had also issued a notice to the Prime Minister’s Office and the DoPT seeking the removal of Chief Vigilance Commissioner K V Chaudhary under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and claimed the accused officers might harass him and his family using central agencies such as CBI, Enforcement Directorate and Income Tax Department.

However, post-retirement Raju did not show interest in speaking about this complaint and instead chose to confine himself to express his desire to serve his home State in a political role.