Video of Kashmir officials’ dispute prompts inquiry calls

A video reported to show a heated exchange at a Mission YUVA review meeting on October 14 depicts senior official Kumar Rajiv Ranjan using insulting language toward officer Beenish Wani and directing that a suspension order be prepared for her. The footage has prompted calls for an inquiry and action, while its authenticity is disputed in accounts attributed to the Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Services fraternity and the department. Ranjan, Administrative Secretary of the Labour and Employment Department, chaired the meeting, which Wani attended remotely. Wani, an Assistant Director in the department, was discussing targets achieved by her office when the two disagreed over the National Rural Livelihood Mission’s role in implementing the programme. The footage shows Ranjan questioning why the mission was involved and repeatedly telling Wani to stop speaking as she tried to explain that it served as a supporting agency. In the circulating video, Ranjan uses derogatory language and says he is Wani’s boss. After she objects to the way he addressed her, he tells another official to prepare a suspension order and asks that her remarks be recorded. Wani responds that he can...