Haryana goes Punjab way, appoints ex-bureaucrat as chief principal secy to CM

Pradeep Sharma

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 19

Following in the footsteps of neighbouring Punjab, Haryana on Monday appointed retired bureaucrat DS Dhesi as the Chief Principal Secretary to the Haryana Chief Minister, a development that will change power equations within the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO).

Dhesi, who remained state’s chief secretary for over four years having retired on June 30, 2019, yesterday resigned as the Chairman of the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) to take up the new assignment.

Though terms of appointment of Dhesi are yet to be made public, it is expected that like  his Punjab counterpart Suresh Kumar, Dhesi would be “super boss” in the CMO with all the files meant for CM Manohar Lal Khattar being routed through him.

In March 2017, Punjab Chief Minister Capt Amrinder Singh had appointed retired IAS officer Suresh Kumar as his Chief PS even though state has a regular PS to Chief Minister (PSCM), a cadre post held by an IAS officer. Suresh Kumar is considered to be the power centre in the Punjab CMO.

However, in Haryana the incumbent PSCM Rajesh Khullar is on his way out following his appointment as the Executive Director, World Bank, Washington. It would be interesting to see who succeeds Khullar and his role and powers in the wake of Dhesi’s appointment as Chief PS.

Even though Dhesi joined today, a petition against Suresh Kumar’s appointment is still pending in the Punjab and Haryana High Court.