Uncivil Catfight In Karnataka: IPS Roopa Moudgil, IAS Rohini Sindhuri Transferred Without New Postings

In a fallout of their bitter public feud, the Karnataka government on Tuesday (21 February) transferred IAS officer Rohini Sindhuri and IPS officer Roopa Moudgil without assigning them new postings. 

Sindhuri, a 2009-batch IAS officer serving as commissioner for Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments, was replaced by Basavarajendra, a 2012-batch IAS officer.

Roopa, a 2000-batch IPS officer posted as managing director at the Karnataka State Handicrafts Development Corporation Ltd was replaced by Bharathi D, a 2013-batch IAS officer. 

Roopa’s husband, Munish Moudgil, currently the commissioner of Survey Settlement and Land Records, may have incurred collateral damage in the ugly dispute featuring the two woman officers — as the government ordered his transfer to Department post of Personnel and Administrative Reforms with immediate effect.

Chief Secretary Intervenes

With the public spat between the two senior women bureaucrats getting murkier, causing huge embarrassment to the administrative apparatus, some state ministers expressed displeasure against their conduct and had warned action, citing service rule violation.

The quarrel between Roopa and Sindhuri on Monday (20 February) reached the office of Chief Secretary Vandita Sharma. They both submitted a petition seeking action against each other and explaining their stance. Sharma is believed to have directed both not to air their opinions in public and adhere to service rules.

During her meeting with Sharma, Roopa is said to have submitted a three-page letter listing corruption allegations against Sindhuri during various postings. 

Roopa said she would urge the government to investigate allegations against Sindhuri. “There’s one Lokayukta complaint against her. I’m asking the government to have it investigated. There are so many things against her, but no action is being taken. I don’t know which powers are protecting her,” she said. 

Terming Roopa’s allegation as false, Sindhuri said, “I’ve filed a complaint with the chief secretary against her seeking action”.

“There’s a certain dignity, and decorum officers should maintain,” she said, adding that she was not active on any social media platform. “There are so many officers. But why am I being targeted?” 

Sindhuri’s husband, a real estate businessman Sudhir Reddy, also complained at a local police station, accusing Roopa of defaming and outraging his wife’s modesty.

Accusing the IPS officer of accessing personal photos through hacking, Reddy said Roopa had misused her official position due to personal agenda or jealousy.

Chief Minister Warns Feuding Officers

As the public spat between two officers showed no signs of abating, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai on Monday (20 February) night said the Chief Secretary has given direction to both officials verbally and in writing, to abide by All India Services Conduct Rules, and they have agreed to it. “I expect them to follow the rules”, he had said.

“They’re behaving in a bad way. Let them do whatever they want in their personal lives. But to act like this in full media view is an insult to the IAS and IPS. They must face punishment,” Home Minister Artha Jnanendra said. “There are conduct rules. They were warned earlier as well,” he added. 

Long Simmering Dispute

According to reports in local media, the public outburst by the two officers was a culmination of a long-simmering dispute between the two.

On Sunday (19 February), Roopa, a social media savvy officer, fired the first salvo with a blistering post on Facebook in which she made grave allegations against Sindhuri. She also attached personal photos of Sindhuri, claiming that these pictures were shared with three male IAS officers.

This, said Roopa, amounted to a “crime” according to the All India Services (Conduct) Rules for officers of the Indian Administrative Services (IAS).

“Pictures like this may feel normal. But, what does it mean if a female IAS officer sends one to one or two or three IAS male officers and many such pics,” she asked.

The trigger for the Roopa's current outburst may have been a widely-circulated photo of Sindhuri dining with Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) MLA Sa Ra Mahesh in a restaurant. The two had several public fights accusing each other of corruption when Sindhuri was posted in Mysuru in 2021.

A couple of years ago, Mahesh made a series of corruption allegations against Sindhuri and demanded an investigation on her alleged involvement in a scam related to purchase of cotton bags.

Sindhuri, in turn, had accused JD-S MLA Sa Ra Mahesh of land encroachment. The recent meeting between the two was speculated as a move towards ending their animosity in the run-up to the state assembly elections.

Among the allegations levelled by Roopa, one pertained to Sindhuri’s alleged role in the 2015 death of DK Ravi, an IAS officer of the 2009 batch, by suicide.

Roopa referred to the personal chats between Sindhuri and Ravi just moments before his suicide in 2015. A section of media had reported that transcripts of WhatsApp messages by Ravi on the day of his death indicated he was in love with Sindhuri and allegedly committed suicide when his overtures were rebuffed.

Roopa also alleged that Sindhuri also had a role in the suicide of another Tamil Nadu cadre IPS officer.

Sindhuri has denied all charges levelled by Roopa.

“She collected photos from social media and screenshots of (my) WhatsApp status to defame me. As she has alleged that I sent these pictures to some officials, I urge her to reveal their names,” Sindhuri said.

Sindhuri issued a media statement, saying that Roopa was “driving a false, personal vilification campaign”. 

She said she would file a complaint against Roopa with the competent authority and pursue all legal remedies against her.

Sindhuri And Roopa Have Both Courted Controversies Repeatedly

Sindhuri has frequently hit the headlines as she has been a central figure in various controversies

Sindhuri, when posted as district deputy commissioner (DC) of Mysuru, was involved in a public feud with Shilpa Nag, then the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) Commissioner. Nag even tendered her resignation, accusing the DC of “targeting” her. Sindhuri responded with a string of allegations criticising the corporation’s Covid management. The state government stepped in, transferring both officials out of the region.

Recently, Bollywood singer Lucky Ali accused Sindhuri of aiding the land mafia to grab his farm near Yelahanka in north Bengaluru. Ali alleged that the farm, a trust property, was encroached upon by Sindhuri’s husband, Sudhir Reddy.

Roopa first catapulted to public limelight after she exposed the special privileges provided to V K Sasikala, a close aide of former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa, at the Bengaluru Central Prison in 2017.

Roopa, who was then serving as deputy inspector general of police (prisons), sent a report to her senior, the director general of police (prisons) HN Satyanarayana Rao, alleging that Sasikala was being treated like an A-class convict (political prisoner) despite no such orders.

A one-person panel set up by the government upheld her findings in its report confirming that Sasikala received a series of privileges as a Parappana Agrahara central prison inmate.

(With Inputs From PTI)