Centre reinstates J&K's Shah Faesal as IAS officer: Details here
The Centre reinstated Shah Faesal, a former Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from Jammu & Kashmir who resigned to join politics, in the civil service on Thursday, reported The Indian Express. Faesal, the first IAS topper from J&K, quit the bureaucracy in January 2019, citing the alleged increased intolerance in the country. He recently remarked that he is excited to "start all over again."
- In 2019, Faesal formed his own party—the Jammu & Kashmir People's Movement (JKPM).
- He was among several politicians taken into preventive detention ahead of the Centre's revocation of Article 370 in August 2019.
- Following six months in preventive detention, Faesal was booked under Public Safety Act (PSA) for allegedly encouraging soft separatism; PSA charges were revoked after four months.
- He quit JKPM in 2020.
Earlier on Wednesday, Faesal hinted at making a comeback to the Indian Administration Service and said the eight months spent in politics created "so much baggage" for him. "While chasing a chimera, I lost almost everything that I had built over the years. Job. Friends. Reputation. Public goodwill. But I never lost hope. My idealism had let me down," he said in a tweet.
"It is always worth giving ourselves another chance. Setbacks make us stronger. And there is an amazing world beyond the shadows of the past. I turn 39 next month. And I'm really excited to start all over again," Faesal said in another tweet.
While launching the JKPM in March 2019, Faesal cited the then Pakistani PM Imran Khan as an inspiration. "History is witness to the fact that whenever a new idea or a new revolution materializes, it is first dismissed," he said at the time. He had stated his party would bring "new politics" to a region that had seen "betrayals" over the last 70 years.
Interestingly, Faesal deleted all social media posts last year and started afresh by sharing information and SOS messages amid the COVID-19 outbreak. He also lauded the Centre for its vaccination drive. Faesal also showered praises on PM Narendra Modi after he met with J&K political leaders in June 2021. "Prime Minister's initiative has raised lot of expectations across Jammu and Kashmir," he had tweeted.
On Friday, former J&K CM and Jammu & Kashmir National Conference (JKNC) leader Omar Abdullah congratulated the IAS officer on his return to the government service. He did, however, say that Faesal will now work for the same administration that once imprisoned him. "I wish him well in his new/old responsibilities," Abdullah said about his former People's Alliance for Gupkar Declaration (PAGD) partner.
Faesal hails from the hamlet of Sogam in the district of Kupwara in North Kashmir. He shot to fame in 2010 when he became the first Kashmiri to top the UPSC Civil Services Examination. He was a qualified doctor before qualifying for the IAS. Later, he was assigned to the J&K cadre and went on to serve the erstwhile state in numerous capacities.
