General Studies Mains-2014 Paper-4 (Ethics and Integrity) Answer : Q-11

You are a no-nonsense, honest officer. You have been transferred to a remote district to head a department that is notorious for its inefficiency and callousness. You find that the main cause of the poor state of affairs is the indiscipline of a section of employees. They do not work themselves and also disrupt the working of others. You first warned the troublemakers to mend their ways or else face disciplinary action. When the warning had little effect, you issued a show cause notice to the ringleaders. As a retaliatory measure, these troublemakers instigated a woman employee amongst them to file a complaint of sexual harassment against you with the Women’s Commission. The Commission promptly seeks your explanation. The matter is also publicized in the media to embarrass you further. Some of the options to handle this situation could be as follows:

1. Give your explanation to the Commission and go soft on the disciplinary action.
2. Ignore the Commission and proceed firmly with the disciplinary action.
3. Brief your higher-ups, seek directions from them and act accordingly.

Suggest any other possible option(s). Evaluate all of them and suggest the best course of action, giving your reasons for it.

1. While providing an explanation to the Commission is recommended, it will be unfair to go soft on the disciplinary action for fear of retribution. The officer must not give in to threats and complete his mission of removing undisciplined elements. If he gave in to the threat, he will lose the respect of his subordinate and fail to be an effective leader
2. Despite the complaint being fraudulent, the officer must not ignore the Commission, and must make his representation before it stating that his conduct is unimpeachable. However, the disciplinary action that has been initiated must follow in accordance with procedures
3. It would be advisable for the officer to brief his superiors about the actions he took, the reasons for the same, and the resultant repercussions. This will help the officer emerge from the attack on his character and integrity without reproach.

If I were the officer in question, I would inform my superiors as the course of events that have taken place, and assure them that I was not guilty of sexual harassment, and would be in a position to handle the situation. Then, I will make my case before the Women’s Commission, state that the complaint was malicious in nature and plead that the matter be dealt with swiftly. Since, I am not guilty I will trust the law and procedure to take their course. Next, I shall insist that the show cause notice given to the employees is responded to. I will let the departmental proceedings run their course in accordance with the rules.