A Joint Secretary (IAS) of a key ministry was recently asked to apply for a lateral shift to another ministry or else get prematurely repatriated to his state cadre.

His sin. As a CVO of the ministry, he entertained an anonymous complaint made to another JS regarding suspicious dealings in the funding of an event organized by the ministry. The suspicion arose because the contract for the ad and event management was given to an agency owned by someone who is seen as a man behind a powerful cabinet minister.

Although according to CVC rules, an anonymous complaint isn't required to be entertained, in the reported case, the JS found substance in the allegation and hence sought the opinion of the higher-ups, thereby inviting political disapproval. Consequently, fist his charge as CVO was taken back and later all crucial charges were taken away from him.  

Since the officer concerned is left with a year's time to complete his central deputation, he is learned to have opted for a lateral shift rather than be prematurely repatriated to his state cadre. It is further learned that the minister concerned is also personally facilitating his lateral shift to assuage the hurt feeling of the officer.