J&K Minister Satish Sharma has flagged the issue of “defiance and disrespect towards the authority of the Ministry”, allegedly displayed by a senior bureaucrat, with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah.

Mr. Sharma, who holds several portfolios including Transport, in a letter to the Chief Minister sought the transfer of J&K Transport Commissioner Vishesh Paul Mahajan, who was posted at the position by the Lieutenant-Governor in December 2024.

“Mr. Mahajan’s continued defiance of and disrespect towards the authority of this Ministry has reached a point where the orderly administration of the Transport Department is being seriously compromised. I regret that I am compelled to raise this matter formally, having exhausted other means of resolving it,” reads the letter of Mr. Sharma.

He said Mr. Mahajan’s conduct has “given rise to open defiance to written or verbal directives, bypassing, discourteous conduct and communication towards the Minister”.

The J&K Minister, in the letter, highlighted that the Transport Commissioner functions as the principal executive officer of the Department under the policy direction and overall supervision of the Minister-in-charge, who in turn remains answerable to the House and to the public for the functioning of the Department.

“Persistent insubordination by a senior officer not only undermines the authority and dignity of the elected office but also disrupts the chain of administrative accountability, adversely affects the morale of the Department, and ultimately impedes the delivery of public services to the citizens,” said the Minister.

The Minister asked the CM to intervene and “requested that Mr Mahajan be immediately moved out of the post of Transport Commissioner and a suitable officer of appropriate seniority be posted in his place”.

The J&K government and the L-G administration have been constantly on a collision course when it comes to transfers of officials in J&K, ever since the elected government took over in October 2024. The elected government and the Centre are yet to finalise the Transaction of Business Rules, which defines the domain of the Chief Minister, Council of Ministers and the L-G in the seven-year-old UT.

Mr. Mahajan earlier served as the Deputy Commissioner, Reasi, and was transferred and appointed as the Director, Tourism, Jammu, by the L-G. However, the Omar Abdullah government had objected to his transfer in 2024 too.