CM-backed proposal to appoint OSD for AG blocked by Punjab Finance

Punjab Finance Department has once again objected to a proposal re-sent to it by the state’s Home department which pushed for having a retired IAS as Officer on Special Duty (OSD) with Advocate General Atul Nanda. The objection comes despite Home Department’s note asking Finance to “reconsider” the proposal as “the CM has also desired it”.
Sources told The Indian Express on Thursday that Finance Department had again declined to give its nod to the proposal while emphasising that the Home Department did not categorically respond to its observations and objections.
The fresh proposal, a senior official from the Finance Department said, was put before “Finance Minister Manpreet Badal after the minister returned from abroad and the minister did not give approval to the proposal”.
The official added that the post of OSD to AG was created by previous SAD-BJP government at the fag end of its tenure and in the first meeting after Amarinder Singh took over as Chief Minister, Punjab government had decided that administrative departments will review the decisions taken by previous government in its last six months.
Finance Department, the official said, had asked Home department to clarify on the issue citing the same reason.