BUREAUCRATS CONTESTING ELECTIONS A NO-NO

The Indian bureaucracy is supposed to be a neutral ( faceless) one - unlike the committed bureaucracy of Russia and partaker of the spoils system in the US . However , of late , it has started behaving as a committed bureaucracy during its tenure and partaker of the spoils
( fruits of commitment ) after superannuation. This is a very unhealthy sign for our democracy and should be castigated. Though there is no law a gainst a bureaucrat contesting elections ( nor can there ever be ) but it can be amply discouraged by the civil society, media and others. It is somewhat of a lesser evil if a bureaucrat contests after resigning from service ( much before securing his pension ) or is invited to the Rajya Sabha -if his work was exceptional -or if he contests as an independent. However, it is abominable if he serves his full term as a bureaucrat and then plunges into elections via a political outfit. That somewhat puts a question mark on his neutrality during his career. Bhagirath Prasad contesting from Morena on Congres ticket is a case in point.