J&K gets IAS officer Sajjan Singh Yadav as new Chief Secretary, will face files with CM-LG on different pages

Dr. Sajjan Singh Yadav, an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer from the 1995 batch, on Saturday (October 24, 2026) was transferred as Chief Secretary (CS) to Jammu and Kashmir, at a time when the significant number of files approved by the elected government stand for clearance in the CS office for the Lieutenant Governor’s nod.

An order of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) said, “With the approval of the Competent Authority, Dr. Sajjan Singh Yadav, IAS (AGMUT:1995) is hereby transferred from Delhi to J&K and posted as Chief Secretary, J&K with effect from November 01 2026 or from the date of joining, whichever is later”.

The Centre picked an officer from the Arunachal Pradesh-Goa-Mizoram and Union Territories AGMUT) cadre despite senior officers in J&K queued up as probables for the SC post, which include IAS officers Shaleen Kabra, Ashwani Kumar Sharma and Dheeraj Gupta.

Mr. Yadav, a resident of Haryana, has a doctorate in Public Health from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and a Master’s in Public Policy from the University of Minnesota. He brings in multi-sectoral experience as he served as Mission Director, National Nutrition Mission (POSHAN Abhiyan); Director, National Rural Health Mission; and Commissioner of Food & Civil Supplies, Trade and Taxes, and Excise in Delhi. This year, Mr. Yadav also served as Delhi Additional Chief Secretary and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Delhi Jal Board.

His entry into J&K comes at a time when the Chief Minister’s office and the Lieutenant Governor’s office remain at loggerheads over a series of issues, especially their spheres of work. The ruling National Conference has repeatedly accused the L-G office of not approving the Cabinet-approved files on regularisation of daily wagers, rationalisation of reservation and finalisation of Transaction of Business Rules, which remain undecided even after two years of completion of the Omar Abdullah government on October 16. The L-G office and the CM office also failed to reach a consensus over the names of the Advocate General and the Public Service Commission head.  

Current J&K Chief Secretary Atal Dulloo, who is retiring later this month, is not leaving on a positive note. J&K CM Abdullah named him on record in the assembly as one who opposed the government’s resolution on Statehood in the Assembly recently. Opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) legislator Waheed-ur-Rehman Parra also moved a Motion of Privilege against Mr. Dullo and Law Secretary Anchal Sethi, stating that the power of an elected Legislature to initiate, deliberate upon, amend and adopt resolutions is a core parliamentary function. 

The Opposition PDP said officers were entitled to provide administrative or legal advice to the Government within the scope of their duties “but such advice cannot be permitted to become an instrument for questioning, constraining or intruding upon the legislative privileges and authority of this House”. 

Also read | PDP moves privilege motion against J&K Chief Secretary, Law Secretary

Meanwhile, ruling NC legislator Tanvir Sadiq termed Mr. Dulloo “a son of the soil” and asked him to clear the regularisation file and send it to the Chief Minister. “Daily wagers and casual workers await regularisation. Mr. Dulloo is here till November 31. He is the son of soil. If he wants something to be done for posterity and his own people, he should return the regularisation file. This will allow us to meet the demand made to people of J&K. History will judge you (Mr. Dulloo) for your contribution to your own people,” said Mr. Sadiq.