JKAS Fraternity, employees’ body seek impartial probe into Mission YUVA meeting; Kumar Rajeev Ranjan says video may be “morphed or AI-generated”
Suhail Khan
Srinagar, October 15: A purported video showing a senior IAS officer allegedly abusing a woman Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) officer during an official review meeting has triggered widespread criticism, with members of the administrative fraternity, journalists, political leaders and employees’ organisations questioning the conduct of senior officials and the treatment of women in government workplaces.
In the video, Kumar Rajeev Ranjan is purportedly heard addressing Assistant Director Beenish Wani as “bloody shit” and “stupid” during a Mission YUVA review meeting held at the Civil Secretariat in Srinagar on October 14. He is also heard directing officials to prepare her suspension order and write to the General Administration Department (GAD) seeking her dismissal from service.
Ranjan, according to a local news agency KDC, has said the footage may be “morphed or AI-generated”. The claims surrounding the video have not been independently established.
The controversy has prompted demands for an impartial inquiry, with critics arguing that administrative authority cannot justify personal insults, intimidation or threats of disciplinary action. The authenticity of the circulating footage and the circumstances surrounding the exchange have not been independently established.
A senior JKAS officer, reacting to the episode, described it as “deeply concerning and unbecoming of the dignity expected in public service”.
“Seniority must command respect through conduct, not fear or intimidation. Authority is a responsibility and not a licence to humiliate,” the officer said.
Joint Director RDD Mantasha Binti Rashid extends support to fellow JKAS officerIn a social media post reacting to the incident, Joint Director, Rural Development Department (RDD), Mantasha Binti Rashid, wrote: “I stand in support of a fellow JKAS officer who is respectfully engaging with her boss in a meeting and trying to explain herself, whereas he is acting like a hooligan, as if engaging in a roadside brawl, and uses unparliamentary language with her.“What happens in these meetings is often humiliating and demeaning. Senior officers need to know what is acceptable and where to draw the line, especially when dealing with local officers who often know much more about the matters on the ground.“This official high-handedness cannot be accepted or tolerated. Perhaps a few, in order to stay in the good books of their bosses, take anything and everything, but anything that is undignified in any professional setup shall not be made a norm.“Sadly, a lot of it is quietly being normalised by power-hungry seniors and spineless juniors.“We work, but not at the cost of respect. You can extract work, but not by trampling others.“#IStandWithBeenish,” she added.
In a social media post on the incident, another user Hakak Shabir Ahmed wrote: “What unfolds behind closed doors in official meetings is not always visible to the outside world. Yet, for many officers, such encounters can be humiliating, demeaning and deeply discouraging. Authority may command a position, but it can never justify disrespect.“Senior officers must understand that leadership is not about intimidation, nor is hierarchy a licence to humiliate. Local officers, who work closely with the realities on the ground, often possess invaluable practical knowledge and institutional insight. Their voices deserve to be heard, their explanations deserve patience, and their dignity deserves protection.“Work can be demanded, accountability can be enforced, and differences can be expressed — but none of these requires the sacrifice of human dignity.“Perhaps, in the pursuit of pleasing those in power, some choose silence over self-respect and submission over principle. But when indignity becomes routine and silence becomes complicity, an unhealthy culture begins to take root. The real tragedy is not merely when authority is misused, but when those who witness it begin to accept it as normal.“A civil service must be built on mutual respect, professional integrity and the courage to speak truth with dignity. Disagreement is not indiscipline, explanation is not defiance, and respect for authority must never mean surrendering one’s self-respect.“We work, but not at the cost of our dignity.“Accountability, yes; humiliation, never.“Authority, yes; arrogance, never.“Respect for hierarchy, yes; submission to indignity, never.“The strength of an institution is not measured by how fearfully juniors obey their seniors, but by how confidently they can speak, how fairly they are heard, and how respectfully they are treated.“Let us not allow official high-handedness to become an accepted culture. Professional dignity is not a privilege granted by a superior; it is a basic standard that every officer deserves.”
Senior journalist Samaan Latief questioned the implications of the incident for women employees lower down the administrative hierarchy.
“Can’t imagine what women employees lower down the hierarchy must be going through if a senior IAS officer can speak to a woman officer in such an abusive manner. It’s pathetic and utterly outrageous!” Latief said in a social media post.
Several social media users also criticised the alleged conduct and called for accountability, arguing that seniority should not place officials beyond scrutiny.
The confrontation reportedly began when Wani raised the role of the National Rural Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) in implementing Mission YUVA, a government initiative focused on employment and entrepreneurship, and highlighted difficulties in coordinating the programme.
Ranjan questioned why the department needed assistance from another agency to meet its targets, maintaining that NRLM was a supporting agency rather than the principal authority responsible for implementation.
As Wani attempted to explain the department’s position and performance, Ranjan repeatedly interrupted her and asked her to stop speaking. Wani objected, saying she was not being allowed to explain herself.
The exchange escalated when Ranjan allegedly used abusive language. Wani is heard objecting to being called “shit” and telling him that he could not speak to her in that manner.
Ranjan then directed officials present in his chamber to prepare a suspension order and record Wani’s remarks during the exchange. He also asked them to write to the GAD seeking her dismissal from service. He subsequently criticised her work, alleging that she had failed to deliver results, before resuming the review meeting and questioning officials from Bandipora and Baramulla about operational shortcomings.
Ranjan also said he had received information from the Deputy Commissioner of Ganderbal that Wani had been on leave since October 13. He shared a copy of her application seeking 10 days of earned leave on medical grounds, from October 13 to October 22. The application did not bear the approval of the competent authority.
Wani could not be reached for comment despite repeated attempts through phone calls and WhatsApp messages.
The JKAS Fraternity condemned the alleged verbal abuse, personal insults and public humiliation of Wani, a 2015-batch officer, during the departmental review meeting conducted virtually from the Civil Secretariat.
While acknowledging the need for administrative accountability and performance monitoring, the fraternity said no supervisory authority could justify abusive language, intimidation or conduct that undermined the dignity of a serving officer.
It also disputed the suggestion that the circulating footage was fabricated or AI-generated, asserting that the video was authentic and that Wani and other officials present during the virtual meeting could corroborate the incident.
The fraternity said it was unfortunate that, instead of addressing the matter through an apology and appropriate institutional corrective action, the administrative secretary had allegedly aggravated the controversy through a public clarification that raised further questions about professional ethics and accountability.
“The reported leave status of an officer cannot, by itself, disprove the authenticity of a recorded virtual meeting,” it said, adding that the footage should be subjected to a transparent and independent technical examination before conclusions were drawn about its authenticity.
The fraternity called on Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo and the GAD to order an impartial inquiry into the incident and the subsequent clarification. It also sought safeguards against retaliatory action against Wani and measures to prevent workplace intimidation and abuse of authority.
The Jammu and Kashmir Employees Joint Action Committee (J&K EJAC) also condemned the alleged use of abusive language during the meeting.
EJAC spokesperson Mir Bashir Ahmad said the organisation’s president, Wajahat Hussain Durrani, had demanded a time-bound and impartial inquiry, with appropriate action against anyone found guilty.
Durrani said such conduct, if established, would be unbecoming of the dignity and decorum expected in public service and could set a wrong precedent in the administrative system. Differences of opinion, he said, must be expressed professionally, and every government employee deserved dignity and respect, irrespective of rank or position.
The organisation urged the government to establish the facts without delay and ensure accountability in accordance with the rules.
PDP leader Iltija Mufti also condemned the alleged remarks and called for immediate action against Ranjan.
“How dare you use such derogatory and demeaning language? Take your god complex and dirty slurs elsewhere. We will not tolerate this in Kashmir,” she said in a post on X.
Mufti alleged that Kashmiri officers had been sidelined since 2019 and that local officers in the administration and police were being undermined in favour of officers from outside the region.
Addressing Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha, she said, “Decency demands that this man be suspended immediately. You are quick to dismiss Kashmiri employees. I hope you apply the same standard here.”
The demands for an inquiry have brought the issue of workplace conduct and accountability in the bureaucracy into focus, with critics stressing that performance reviews and administrative discipline must be exercised within the bounds of professional conduct. The allegations, however, remain subject to independent verification.
