Following an order by the Himachal Pradesh High Court, the Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu government has got vacated the offices of the six Chief Parliamentary Secretaries at the Secretariat in Shimla and given directions for the immediate withdrawal of their staff, vehicles and official accommodation.
The Himachal Pradesh government acted swiftly, issuing these orders on Wednesday (November 14, 2024) evening, a few hours after the high court order, removing all official privileges previously granted to the Chief Parliamentary Secretaries. The move comes after the high court ruled that the appointment of Chief Parliamentary Secretaries constitutes an “office of profit”.
The Secretariat witnessed a sudden change as rooms previously occupied by CPS members fell silent. Most CPS were absent on Thursday, marking a significant shift in the organisational structure of the state government. Alongside seven ministers, these CPS members had previously taken the oath of secrecy and each was assigned specific departmental responsibilities to assist the ministers.
Departmental responsibilities of former CPSs
In the Sukhu administration, the following CPS were appointed to various departments:
Mohan Lal Brakta — Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Horticulture.
Ram Kumar — Town Planning, Industry and Revenue
Ashish Butail — Urban Development and Education, assisting both the Chief Minister and Education Minister
Kishori Lal — Animal Husbandry, Rural Development and Panchayati Raj
Sanjay Awasthy — Health, Public Relations and Public Works
Sunder Singh Thakur —Energy, Forest, Transport and Tourism
In a landmark judgment, the Himachal Pradesh High Court declared that CPS positions fall under the “office of profit” category, ending the previous legal protection under the Disqualification Act of 1971. As a result, any future CPS appointments would result in the loss of an MLA’s legislative status. This ruling has reshaped the landscape for CPS appointments in the state and may deter similar appointments in the future, given the high risk of disqualification.
