Vikas Barala dropped as law officer in Haryana advocate general's office

Chandigarh: The name of BJP MP Subhash Barala's son Vikas Barala, appointed as a law officer in the office of the Haryana advocate general, has been dropped from the list as he did not join the post, official sources said on Monday.

Vikas, an accused in a case of stalking, had been appointed as an assistant advocate general to represent the Haryana government before judicial platforms in the national capital.

His appointment was part of a broader recruitment of 100 law officers by the government and which was officially notified on July 18, according to an appointment order issued in this regard recently.

The official sources said since Vikas did not join, his name was dropped from the list of those appointed.

When contacted, Haryana's Advocate General Pravindra Singh Chauhan said over the phone on Monday, "Vikas didn't join (assume charge)".

"Generally, there is a timeframe of a week to ten days given, but if anyone does not join by then, we inform the government accordingly, the AG said over the phone.

Told that some of those appointed as law officers are relatives of politicians and bureaucrats, Chauhan, without going into the specifics of those recruitments, said, "All those appointed are there only because of themselves. Don't go by the surnames.

"It won't be correct to see all from one lens. They are competent lawyers and their selection has been made on merit." The advertisement for the appointments of the law officers was put out in January by the state government.

In June, the state government constituted a "selection committee" under the Haryana Law Officers (Engagement) Act, 2016 for the finalisation of the selection process to engage 100 law officers, which included 20 additional advocate generals, 20 senior deputy advocate generals, 30 deputy advocate generals and 30 assistant advocate generals, following the January 31 advertisement.

After Vikas Barala's appointment, the complainant in the stalking case slammed the move, saying that appointing someone to a public position of power is not only a political decision but it is also a reflection of values and standards.

The incident leading to the charges against Vikas occurred in 2017 when his father was the Haryana BJP chief. Subhash Barala is currently a Rajya Sabha MP.

The complainant, Varnika Kundu, the daughter of an IAS officer (retired), had expressed her disappointment at the development.

Kundu, who was 29 at the time of the incident, had in her complaint accused Vikas and his friend of stalking and attempting to abduct her.

Taking to social media last week but without naming Vikas directly, Kundu issued a statement calling out the authorities involved in his appointment as a law officer.

"Appointing someone to a public position of power is not only a political decision but it is also a reflection of values and standards. So, perhaps, the questions should be directed at the authorities whose ethics and standards allowed this decision to be made. Our policymakers run the country; the rest of us are just hoping they remember that they work for the Indian citizen," she said in her post.

Vikas and his friend Ashish Kumar were charged with stalking and attempting to kidnap Kundu by a court here in October 2017. The trial in the case is ongoing before a Chandigarh court.

On August 5, 2017, Vikas, who was 23 at the time and a law student, along with Kumar, had allegedly followed Kundu's car in their SUV and tried to block the way.

The charges against them were framed under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including 354d (stalking), 341 (wrongful restraint) and 365 read with 511 (attempt to kidnap).

Initially, arrested on the night of August 4-5, 2017, they were released on bail as their charges were bailable under the IPC and the Motor Vehicles Act. They were later re-arrested on August 9, 2017, after cooperating with the investigation, but received bail again from the high court in January 2018.