With the joining of Chief Secretary Vivek Joshi as Election Commissioner on Wednesday, there is suspense in the bureaucratic circles about who will succeed him. Haryana Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini is believed to have started the process of selecting a suitable officer for the top post.
The new chief secretary is likely to be chosen from among five 1990-batch IAS officers – Sudhir Rajpal, Sumita Misra, Anurag Rastogi, Anand Mohan Sharan, and Raja Sekhar Vundru.
The Haryana government had referred the issue of seniority to the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) for resolution. However, the DoPT put the ball right back in the state government's court and asked it to resolve the matter. Sources said that Rastogi is likely to be picked even though he is set to retire on June 30.
Rastogi was given charge of the Chief Secretary on TVSN Prasad's superannuation and before Joshi joined his home cadre from central deputation. Rastogi was later posted as Financial Commissioner, Revenue, a position occupied by the senior-most officer. This has fuelled speculation of him being elevated as CS after the vacancy at the top.
Currently, all five officers are posted as additional chief secretaries, with Rajpal in charge of Health, Misra of Home, Rastogi of Finance, Sharan of Environment, and Vundru of Agriculture. Rajpal is the senior-most officer in the group, followed by Misra. While Rajpal is due to retire on November 30, 2026, Misra will retire on January 30, 2027, Sharan on August 31 this year, and Vundru on July 31, 2026.
The officers have been involved in a seniority dispute for several months. Three officers of the 1990 batch, Rastogi, Vundru and Ankur Gupta had challenged the gradation list, claiming that Rajpal and Misra, who were placed above them, should be lower in the pecking order as they were ‘outsiders’ and not originally from the Haryana cadre. While Rajpal came from Himachal Pradesh, Misra was transferred from Jammu and Kashmir. A clear picture is expected to emerge soon, with Rastogi – currently Financial Commissioner, Revenue and Additional Chief Secretary (ACS), Finance – being the leading contender.
