Demotion and ignominy first,
Appointment as IRDA Chief
next!
This, then, is the
perplexing story of TS Vijayan, ex-Chairman of Life Insurance Corporation of
India, who has now been appointed as the chief of Insurance Regulatory &
Development Authority, the regulator of the Insurance sector - Read this news
item in Economic Times first, before moving on to my thoughts on the
news:
I do not wish to go into the merits of
whether or not TS Vijayan ought to have been demoted from the position of
Chairman, LIC. Nor do I intend saying anything about his credentials to occupy
the position of IRDA Chief.
However, I wish to emphasise that one
of the above two decisions by the powers that be is blatantly wrong.
After all, when a person is demoted from the
position of Chairman, LIC to the position of Managing Director, LIC, it is not a
routine decision taken without due thought and due process. Obviously, the
government of the day, after going through all the relevant acts of omission and
commission, all the available data points, all the necessary questioning of
concerned stakeholders, came to the conclusion that TS Vijayan ought to be
demoted.
Let's call this Decision 1.
A few months go by. The then Finance Minister goes
on to become the President of India. A different person moves into the role of
Finance Minister. And guess what happens? Another round of consultations.
Another due process. Presumably another evaluation of multiple canidates for a
key vacancy of IRDA Chief. And, finally, TS Vijayan is appointed as the big boss
of IRDA.
Let's call this Decision 2.
To my limited understanding, if Decision 1 is a correct
decision, Decision 2 is not merely an
inappropriate decision, but an act of negligence which is sure to have an
adverse impact on the confidence of stake holders in the Insurance Regulator.
And vice versa.
Is this a desirable situation?
Regards,
