CAT Refuses Interim Stay on Centre’s Orders, No Relief for IAS Officers in Cadre Dispute

**Hyderabad, October 15, 2024**: The **Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT)** has refused to grant an interim stay on the Centre’s recent orders, which rejected the pleas of five **Indian Administrative Service (IAS)** officers challenging their cadre reallocation. These officers had sought retention in their current postings under the **Telangana** and **Andhra Pradesh** state cadres, resisting transfers mandated by the **Pratyush Sinha Committee** guidelines.The officers, who include **Telangana Energy Secretary Ronald Rose**, **Tourism Principal Secretary Vani Prasad**, **GHMC Commissioner Amrapali Kata**, **Women and Child Welfare Secretary Karuna Vakati**, and **NTR District Collector G. Srujana**, have been instructed to report to their respective cadres as scheduled tomorrow. The CAT has directed them to continue their duties while awaiting further decisions and has asked the **Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT)** to submit a detailed report addressing their grievances by the first week of November.The five IAS officers filed petitions requesting the quashing of the Centre’s orders, issued by the DoPT on **October 9**, which directed them to report to their original cadres by **October 16**. Ronald Rose and Vani Prasad, who are currently serving in Telangana, along with G. Srujana from Andhra Pradesh, challenged their cadre reallocations based on the 2014 bifurcation guidelines. They argue that the Centre’s decisions were made without considering their personal circumstances and that the Pratyush Sinha Committee’s allocation process was flawed.The cadre reallocation issue dates back to the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh and the creation of Telangana in **2014**, which led to the division of IAS officers between the two states. While the officers have been serving in their respective postings for nearly a decade, the Telangana High Court, in 2023, referred the matter to the Centre, instructing it to review the officers’ appeals in accordance with existing guidelines.On October 9, the DoPT rejected their pleas, reaffirming the cadre reallocation order issued in 2014, requiring the officers to return to their original state cadres by the deadline.The officers raised several concerns about the Pratyush Sinha Committee’s allocation process. **Ronald Rose**, in his petition, argued that the committee’s seniority cut-off date unfairly impacted his allocation to Telangana. Meanwhile, **Vani Prasad** and **Karuna Vakati** claimed their inclusion in the Andhra Pradesh domicile list was incorrect, as they have lived their entire lives in Hyderabad and Telangana. **Amrapali Kata**, GHMC Commissioner, also expressed concerns about the guidelines for direct recruit IAS officers in the unreserved category, stating that the Centre’s decision lacked adequate scrutiny.Though the CAT did not stay the Centre’s orders, it emphasized the need for the officers to comply with the cadre reporting deadline. The tribunal has sought a detailed report from the DoPT on the decision-making process by early November. It also reminded the officers of the critical public needs in Vijayawada, particularly with ongoing flood relief efforts, and urged them to fulfill their duties in their respective postings.The case remains under review, and further developments are expected as the DoPT submits its report next month.