It is a known fact that a government is a continuous process. The parties in power may change, but the administration, that comprises bureaucrats, police, officials in the secretariat and other departments, remains the same.
So, whenever a GO is issued, it only refers to the orders issued by the previous government and reflects the latest decisions of the present government.
The GOs don’t make any political statement in tune with that of the ruling party, but only contains the decisions of the present government.
However, the latest GO issued by Andhra Pradesh chief secretary Adityanath Das on Thursday night on the constitution of state-level and district-level committees to protect communal harmony and safeguard the religious properties appears like a political statement.
While saying that Andhra Pradesh has always been famed for its communal peace and harmony and one would look back at the State's tranquillity with humility and pride, the GO issued by the chief secretary says the recent surge in attacks on the temples has raised many serious questions.
It said the incidents have brought to light attempts of the vested interests to destabilize the communal harmony in the state. It also said what is particularly disturbing is the timing of these incidents.
So far so good. But in the subsequent para, the chief secretary made a scathing attack on the previous government headed by Naidu.
He said the people of the State of Andhra Pradesh have been subjected to immense suffering during the last few years.
“The erstwhile State was bifurcated in an unjust and inequitable manner, resulting in the successor State being economically deprived. During the period 2014-19, the State has witnessed unprecedented levels of policy paralysis resulting in the underperformance of the State on all critical fronts such as health, education, agriculture etc,” he commented.
In the next couple of paras, the chief secretary explained how the present government resorted to corrective measures by focussing on targeted and impactful interventions by formulating programmes that ensure equitable growth…etc.
Das sought to project that those who were not able to digest the economic revival of the state were provoking communal sentiments, indicating that it was the TDP behind the attacks on temples.
Well, what the TDP government could not do and what the Jagan government is doing is a political issue. The TDP lost power because the people felt it did not deliver goods and voted for Jagan with a hope to get better rule.
It is not for the administration to make political comments, instead of confining itself to the latest decisions of the government.
The comments made in the GO have already been made by Jagan and his party leaders, but incorporating them in a GO is something unusual!