New Delhi: Central
government employees may be exempted from filing details of their assets
and liabilities twice -- as mandated under Lokpal Act and other service
rules governing them -- as the Centre has suggested a way out.
As per the Lokpal Act, every public servant shall file the returns of
his assets and liabilities, including that of his spouse and dependent
family members. These returns are in addition to the similar ones filed
by the employees under various services rules.
"The requirement of filing returns regarding assets and liabilities
under the Lokpal Act is in addition to, and not in derogation or
suppression of the requirement of filing of property returns under the
existing conduct rules.
"In view of this, the requirement of filing of property returns under
the existing conduct rules is an independent requirement under the
applicable rules and the same can be dispensed with, only by amending
those rules," the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said.
In other words, the requirement of filing returns of assets and
liabilities under the applicable conduct rules has to continue, till
such time as the provisions of those rules are harmonised with the
relevant provisions of the Lokpal Act and the rules framed thereunder by
carrying out appropriate amendments in them, it said in an order issued
yesterday.
All ministries, departments and cadre controlling authorities have been
asked to ensure that necessary follow-up action for harmonising the
provisions of the relevant service rules is completed before 15 July, the DoPT said.
The Centre had in an order issued last month revised the time limit of
bringing in changes to the the relevant service rules to 18 months from
the date of Lokpal Act coming into force, i.e 16 January 2014.
Till, the rules are not harmonised, all public servants have been asked
to file their annual property returns as per the existing service rules
and Lokpal Act.
The last date for filing the assets details under the Lokpal Act is till April this year.
As per the Lokpal Act, every public servant shall file the returns of
his assets and liabilities, including that of his spouse and dependent
family members, on 31 March every year on or before 31 July of that year.
For the current year, the last date for filing these returns was 15 September, which was later extended to December-end and now till 30 April 2015.
All Group A, B, and C employees are supposed to file a declaration under
the new rules. There are about 26,29, 913 employees in these three
categories, as per the government's latest data.
Source : PTI
