We are a group of former officers of the All India and Central Services who have worked with the Central and State Governments in different capacities. We have come together as a group known as the Constitutional Conduct Group (CCG). This group does not support any political party but believes in impartiality, neutrality and commitment to the Constitution of India.
In the normal course, when we observe a flagrant violation of the principles embodied in the Constitution, we write letters or make open statements pointing this out to the concerned governments and to constitutional/statutory bodies. However, upholding the principles of the Constitution is not a function of governments alone. All of us, as individual citizens as well as members of various organisations in the country – social, political, professional or business – have a duty to uphold the values enshrined in the Constitution and to follow these principles both in our work as well as in our personal lives. Unfortunately, in recent times, we see growing discord and distrust among the people of the country and a steady erosion of democratic values with long term consequences for everyone.
Today, we are addressing this open letter not to the government but to an equally important segment of society, viz. the various companies, business houses and corporates in the country. These entities, responsible for wealth creation in the country, have not, we believe, been doing their bit in upholding the rights and freedoms spelt out in the Constitution. Sadly, an impression has gained ground that these bodies have preferred to look the other way even as a rising tide of hatred and divisiveness threatens the very foundations of our society.
Many well-established corporates have shown no hesitation in advertising their products on media channels which have made it a practice to ramp up their viewership by spewing hatred, creating divisions on the basis of religion and caste, manufacturing false narratives and making criminals out of law-abiding people. It is possible that these corporates have not given sufficient thought to how their acts have unwittingly strengthened the forces which divide the nation through deliberate false propaganda.
Our Constitution, as we know, guarantees fundamental rights to each and every one of its citizens. Article 15 of the Constitution prohibits discrimination on the grounds of religion, race, caste, sex and place of birth. It is a matter of concern for all of us that several media channels have gone against this fundamental right on a regular basis and yet receive advertisements from many companies. Channels which communalise the spread of COVID-19, allege that the UPSC has allowed Muslims to ‘infiltrate’ the higher civil services and dub sensitive advertisements about communal harmony as “Love Jihad” are unfortunately patronised by many corporates. Corporates often go by apparently doubtful TRP numbers to decide their policy for advertisements. It is certainly time to look beyond such technical considerations.
Advertising on channels which spread divisiveness is bad not only on moral grounds but bad for business as well. As several economists and social scientists have pointed out, investments tend to wither when there is unrest. And that is, unquestionably, what has been happening in India. India’s investment as a percentage of the nominal GDP has declined from 41.2% in Sept 2011 to 21.4% in June 2020. Many other growth parameters have been on a downward spiral too. Distrust, fear and uncertainty hurt not just the fabric of society but business as well.
In the midst of this gloom, a few corporates stand out like shining beacons: they have taken a stand against advertising on media channels which foment hatred and disharmony. We commend them for their initiative and courage. We also fervently hope that other corporates will follow their example. To all companies, business houses and corporate bodies we would like to say: let not any of your actions, even inadvertently, help forces that create discord and ill-will amongst our people. This country and its people deserve better. It is time to show, through both substantive and symbolic acts, that we uphold the principles of our Constitution and are committed to the peace and prosperity of all our citizens.
SATYAMEVA JAYATE
| 1. | Anita Agnihotri | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Department of Social Justice Empowerment, GoI |
| 2. | Salahuddin Ahmad | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Rajasthan |
| 3. | Shafi Alam | IPS (Retd.) | Former Director General, National Crime Records Bureau, GoI |
| 4. | K. Saleem Ali | IPS (Retd.) | Former Special Director, CBI, GoI |
| 5. | S.P. Ambrose | IAS (Retd.) | Former Additional Secretary, Ministry of Shipping & Transport, GoI |
| 6. | G. Balachandhran | IAS (Retd.) | Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal |
| 7. | Vappala Balachandran | IPS (Retd.) | Former Special Secretary, Cabinet Secretariat, GoI |
| 8. | Gopalan Balagopal | IAS (Retd.) | Former Special Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal |
| 9. | Chandrashekhar Balakrishnan | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Coal, GoI |
| 10. | T.K. Banerji | IAS (Retd.) | Former Member, Union Public Service Commission |
| 11. | Sharad Behar | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Madhya Pradesh |
| 12. | Aurobindo Behera | IAS (Retd.) | Former Member, Board of Revenue, Govt. of Odisha |
| 13. | Madhu Bhaduri | IFS (Retd.) | Former Ambassador to Portugal |
| 14. | Pradip Bhattacharya | IAS (Retd.) | Former Additional Chief Secretary, Development & Planning and Administrative Training Institute, Govt. of West Bengal |
| 15. | Ravi Budhiraja | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chairman, Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust, GoI |
| 16. | Sundar Burra | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra |
| 17. | R. Chandramohan | IAS (Retd.) | Former Principal Secretary, Transport and Urban Development, Govt. of NCT of Delhi |
| 18. | Rachel Chatterjee | IAS (Retd.) | Former Special Chief Secretary, Agriculture, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh |
| 19. | Anna Dani | IAS (Retd.) | Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of Maharashtra |
| 20. | Vibha Puri Das | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Ministry of Tribal Affairs, GoI |
| 21. | P.R. Dasgupta | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chairman, Food Corporation of India, GoI |
| 22. | Nareshwar Dayal | IFS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Ministry of External Affairs and former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom |
| 23. | Pradeep K. Deb | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Deptt. Of Sports, GoI |
| 24. | Nitin Desai | IES (Retd.) | Former Secretary and Chief Economic Adviser, Ministry of Finance, GoI |
| 25. | Keshav Desiraju | IAS (Retd.) | Former Health Secretary, GoI |
| 26. | M.G. Devasahayam | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Govt. of Haryana |
| 27. | Sushil Dubey | IFS (Retd.) | Former Ambassador to Sweden |
| 28. | K.P. Fabian | IFS (Retd.) | Former Ambassador to Italy |
| 29. | Arif Ghauri | IRS (Retd.) | Former Governance Adviser, DFID, Govt. of the United Kingdom (on deputation) |
| 30. | Gourisankar Ghosh | IAS (Retd.) | Former Mission Director, National Drinking Water Mission, GoI |
| 31. | Suresh K. Goel | IFS (Retd.) | Former Director General, Indian Council of Cultural Relations, GoI |
| 32. | S.K. Guha | IAS (Retd.) | Former Joint Secretary, Department of Women & Child Development, GoI |
| 33. | H.S. Gujral | IFoS (Retd.) | Former Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Govt. of Punjab |
| 34. | Meena Gupta | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Ministry of Environment & Forests, GoI |
| 35. | Ravi Vira Gupta | IAS (Retd.) | Former Deputy Governor, Reserve Bank of India |
| 36. | Wajahat Habibullah | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, GoI and Chief Information Commissioner |
| 37. | Sajjad Hassan | IAS (Retd.) | Former Commissioner (Planning), Govt. of Manipur |
| 38. | Siraj Hussain | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Department of Agriculture, GoI |
| 39. | Kamal Jaswal | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Department of Information Technology, GoI |
| 40. | Najeeb Jung | IAS (Retd.) | Former Lieutenant Governor, Delhi |
| 41. | Rahul Khullar | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chairman, Telecom Regulatory Authority of India |
| 42. | Ajai Kumar | IFoS(Retd.) | Former Director, Ministry of Agriculture, GoI |
| 43. | Brijesh Kumar | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Department of Information Technology, GoI |
| 44. | P.K. Lahiri | IAS (Retd.) | Former ED, Asian Development Bank & Former Revenue Secretary, GoI |
| 45. | Aloke B. Lal | IPS (Retd.) | Former Director General (Prosecution), Govt. of Uttarakhand |
| 46. | Subodh Lal | IPoS (Resigned) | Former Deputy Director General, Ministry of Communications, GoI |
| 47. | B.B. Mahajan | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Deptt. of Food, GoI |
| 48. | Harsh Mander | IAS (Retd.) | Govt. of Madhya Pradesh |
| 49. | Aditi Mehta | IAS (Retd.) | Former Additional Chief Secretary, Govt. of Rajasthan
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| 50. | Sonalini Mirchandani | IFS (Resigned) | GoI |
| 51. | Noor Mohammad | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, National Disaster Management Authority, Govt. of India |
| 52. | Avinash Mohananey | IPS (Retd.) | Former Director General of Police, Govt. of Sikkim
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| 53. | Deb Mukharji | IFS (Retd.) | Former High Commissioner to Bangladesh and former Ambassador to Nepal |
| 54. | Shiv Shankar Mukherjee | IFS (Retd.) | Former High Commissioner to the United Kingdom |
| 55. | Pranab S. Mukhopadhyay | IAS (Retd.) | Former Director, Institute of Port Management, GoI |
| 56. | Nagalsamy | IA&AS (Retd.) | Former Principal Accountant General, Tamil Nadu & Kerala |
| 57. | Sobha Nambisan | IAS (Retd.) | Former Principal Secretary (Planning), Govt. of Karnataka |
| 58. | P.G.J. Nampoothiri | IPS (Retd.) | Former Director General of Police, Govt. of Gujarat |
| 59. | P. Joy Oommen | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of Chhattisgarh |
| 60. | S.K. Pachauri | IAS (Retd.) | Former Director General, National Productivity Council, GoI |
| 61. | Amitabha Pande | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Inter-State Council, GoI |
| 62. | Mira Pande | IAS (Retd.) | Former State Election Commissioner, West Bengal |
| 63. | Alok Perti | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Ministry of Coal, GoI |
| 64. | R. Poornalingam | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Ministry of Textiles, GoI |
| 65. | V.P. Raja | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chairman, Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission |
| 66. | K. Sujatha Rao | IAS (Retd.) | Former Health Secretary, GoI |
| 67. | M.Y. Rao | IAS (Retd.) | |
| 68. | Satwant Reddy | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Chemicals and Petrochemicals, GoI |
| 69. | Vijaya Latha Reddy | IFS (Retd.) | Former Deputy National Security Adviser, GoI |
| 70. | Julio Ribeiro | IPS (Retd.) | Former Adviser to Governor of Punjab & former Ambassador to Romania |
| 71. | Aruna Roy | IAS (Resigned) | |
| 72. | A.K. Samanta | IPS (Retd.) | Former Director General of Police (Intelligence), Govt. of West Bengal |
| 73. | Deepak Sanan | IAS (Retd.) | Former Principal Adviser (AR) to Chief Minister, Govt. of Himachal Pradesh |
| 74. | G. Sankaran | IC&CES (Retd.) | Former President, Customs, Excise and Gold (Control) Appellate Tribunal |
| 75. | N.C. Saxena | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Planning Commission, GoI |
| 76. | A. Selvaraj | IRS (Retd.) | Former Chief Commissioner, Income Tax, Chennai, GoI |
| 77. | Ardhendu Sen | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chief Secretary, Govt. of West Bengal |
| 78. | Abhijit Sengupta | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Ministry of Culture, GoI |
| 79. | Aftab Seth | IFS (Retd.) | Former Ambassador to Japan |
| 80. | Ashok Kumar Sharma | IFoS (Retd.) | Former MD, State Forest Development Corporation, Govt. of Gujarat |
| 81. | Ashok Kumar Sharma | IFS (Retd.) | Former Ambassador to Finland and Estonia
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| 82. | Navrekha Sharma | IFS (Retd.) | Former Ambassador to Indonesia |
| 83. | Raju Sharma | IAS (Retd.) | Former Member, Board of Revenue, Govt. of Uttar Pradesh |
| 84. | Tirlochan Singh | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, National Commission for Minorities, GoI |
| 85. | Narendra Sisodia | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Ministry of Finance, GoI
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| 86. | A.K. Srivastava | IAS (Retd.) | Former Administrative Member, Madhya Pradesh Administrative Tribunal |
| 87. | Sanjivi Sundar | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary, Ministry of Surface Transport, GoI |
| 88. | Parveen Talha | IRS (Retd.) | Former Member, Union Public Service Commission |
| 89. | Thanksy Thekkekera | IAS (Retd.) | Former Additional Chief Secretary, Minorities Development, Govt. of Maharashtra |
| 90. | P.S.S. Thomas | IAS (Retd.) | Former Secretary General, National Human Rights Commission |
| 91. | Geetha Thoopal | IRAS (Retd.) | Former General Manager, Metro Railway, Kolkata |
| 92. | Hindal Tyabji | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chief Secretary rank, Govt. of Jammu & Kashmir |
| 93. | Jawed Usmani | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chief Information Commissioner, Uttar Pradesh |
| 94. | Ashok Vajpeyi | IAS (Retd.) | Former Chairman, Lalit Kala Akademi |
| 95. | Ramani Venkatesan | IAS (Retd.) | Former Director General, YASHADA, Govt. of Maharashtra |
