In a candid admission, Mizoram Chief Minister Zoramthanga said that his ministers don’t understand Hindi and some of them don’t even know English.
He said this in a letter to Home Minister Amit Shah urging him to modify the Centre’s order and replace the state chief secretary who does not have a working knowledge of the Mizo language.
The Chief Minister has requested that Additional Chief Secretary JC Ramthanga be named the new chief secretary in place of Renu Sharma.
“After the retirement of my Chief Secretary Lalnunmawia Chuaugo of Gujarat Cadre, I requested my present Additional Chief Secretary JC Ramthanga (Manipur Cadre) to be the next Chief Secretary. However, the Home Ministry has posted Renu Sharma as the new Chief Secretary,” the Chief Minister has said in the letter.
Renu Sharma, an AGMUT cadre IAS officer of the 1988 batch, was appointed by the Centre on October 28 to take charge from November 1 as Chief secretary of Mizoram.
The CM’s letter was dated October 29, according to a national TV news channel. The same day, the Mizoram government also ordered JC Ramthanga to take charge as chief secretary from November 1, thus Mizoram now has two Chief secretaries.
“The Mizo people by and large, do not understand Hindi, and none of my Cabinet Ministers understand Hindi, some of them even have problems with the English language. With such a background, a Chief Secretary without the knowledge of a working standard Mizo language will never be an effective and efficient Chief Secretary,” the Chief Minister said in his letter.