Bengal tells government employees to strictly comply with rules limiting media interaction

The Bharatiya Janata Party government in West Bengal has told its employees not to speak with the media without permission, citing conduct rules, The Indian Express reported on Thursday.

In a circular, Chief Secretary Manoj Agarwal reiterated the rules governing the conduct of the All India Services, the West Bengal Civil Service, the West Bengal Police Service and other state government employees.

Citing the 1968 All India Service Conduct Rules, the 1980 West Bengal Service Duties, Rights and Obligations of Government Employees Rules and the 1959 West Bengal Government Servants Conduct Rules, Agarwal said that these regulations define the “nature of and limitations on” interactions with the media.

The chief secretary said that there would be a “complete prohibition, except with prior sanction, on the participation or association of any member of the services in any sponsored or privately produced media programme or any media programme sponsored by the government of India but produced by an outside agency”, The Indian Express reported.

The circular also noted that there would be a “complete prohibition without any governmental order” on any direct or indirect communication of any document or information with the press by the members of the services.

It prohibited contributions “in editing or managing of any newspaper, periodical or any other publication and on any participation...

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