New Delhi: In an unprecedented administrative action ahead of the expected Union Cabinet reshuffle, four close personal staff attached to Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav have been removed through four separate office orders issued on 3 July with immediate effect.
The orders, issued by the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, remove the Minister’s Private Secretary, two Additional Private Secretaries and one Assistant Private Secretary from their respective positions, effectively dismantling his personal office in a single day.
Among those removed is Amar Singh, an Indian Revenue Service (Income Tax) officer of the 2010 batch serving as Private Secretary to the Minister. He has been repatriated to his parent cadre, the Department of Revenue, on “administrative grounds” and directed to report immediately.
The 1983 born Singh was appointed on the said post in June 2024.
Additional Private Secretary Shailesh Kumar Singh, a Central Secretariat Service officer, has been prematurely repatriated to the Department of Personnel and Training under the provision of “extended cooling off” and directed to report to his parent cadre with immediate effect. He working with Yadav since November 2024.
The appointments of Additional Private Secretary Ayush Saran and Assistant Private Secretary Siddharth Yadav have been terminated with immediate effect, according to separate office orders. Both were appointed in June 2024.
All these appointments were on coterminous basis or until further orders.
All four orders were issued on 3 July and cite approvals under the Department of Personnel and Training’s Office Memorandum. Each directs the officers to relinquish charge immediately.
The simultaneous removal of the Minister’s entire senior personal establishment is highly unusual in the functioning of the Union government. While changes in ministerial staff are not uncommon following cabinet reshuffles or changes in portfolios, officials familiar with government procedures said they could not recall another recent instance where such a large number of serving Union minister’s staff was removed in one stroke while the minister himself continues in office.
The development assumes significance as it comes just days before the anticipated Cabinet reshuffle. However, neither the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, the Department of Personnel and Training, nor the office of the Minister has issued any official explanation for the sweeping action.
Government sources said no official communication has been issued explaining the reasons behind the decision.
Sources familiar with the matter said such a comprehensive removal of a minister’s personal staff “does not happen for a positive reason,” though they declined to elaborate. The government has not officially commented on the circumstances leading to the action.
Official sources within the department said that this was a routine development and not much should be read into it while denying speculations of corruption behind the move.
The office orders themselves do not assign any reasons except describing Amar Singh’s repatriation as being on “administrative grounds” and Shailesh Kumar Singh’s return to his parent cadre under the “extended cooling off” provision. The termination orders relating to Ayush Saran and Siddharth Yadav do not specify any reason.
