Karma will catch up with you, govt. teacher to Somesh Kumar

HYDERABAD: One man appeared to be giddy with glee after the central government relieved Somesh Kumar as Telangana Chief Secretary and asked him to join the Andhra Pradesh government. 'Reap what you sow’,is how a government teacher from Sircilla district vent his anger, adding that the cycle of karma will not spare anyone for their wrongdoing.

The reason for his anger: GO 317.

Thaniparthi Thirupathi Rao, a school assistant teaching math at ZPHS Vattimalla in Sircilla district, stated in a now-viral Facebook post that the GO 317 that introduced the zone system had subjected government employees to tremendous hardships.

Government employees, particularly teachers, suffered as a result of the GO that transferred thousands of government employees last year to work in districts other than their native places, he noted. “The unfair manner in which you transferred thousands of government staff, the court too transferred you to another state overnight. This is the principle of karma,” he wrote in his Facebook account.

According to the senior instructor, as CS, Somesh Kumar did not consider the difficulties faced by thousands of employees when initiating irrational transfers through GO 317. "We had been estranged from our spouses, children, and parents. We moved courts for justice, but we didn't receive it there either. We had no choice except to submit."

Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Thirupathi Rao said, “I hail from Peddapalli and was transferred to Sircilla district under the GO 317 guidelines. The GO caused hardship to several government employees like me. I had to undergo stress due to the unilateral decision of the government. It’s out of this pain and anguish that I expressed my views.”

Tirupathi Rao went on to say that the senior IAS officer had the luxury of a swanky home, vehicle, and all other amenities to any location where he is transferred, unlike thousands of employees who have had to suffer in silence owing to unilateral transfers.

"As a government employee, I understand your feelings about being suddenly transferred," he quipped. He cautioned Somesh Kumar not to repeat his previous mistakes, or else his bad karma would catch up with him.

State government employees, mostly teachers, across the state protested after the introduction of GO 317 in December 2021 alleging that the government ignored aspects like nativity before deciding on transfers. They alleged that the government’s decision was unilateral and irrational which forced some employees to resort to extreme steps like ending their life.