8 things you should know about Jammu and Kashmir government’s restriction on use of social media by govt. employees

Concerned over excessive engagement of employees on social media and its serious ramifications, the Jammu & Kashmir Government  has put several restrictions on its use by amending Jammu and Kashmir Government Employees Conduct Rules. Even detailed guidelines have been issued for strict compliance by all.

After thorough deliberations on all the aspects of use of social media by the employees, the Government has amended Jammu and Kashmir Government Employees Conduct Rules, 1971. By way of amendment carried out with the consent of the Governor, a new proviso has been added under Rule 13.

Here are 8 things you should know about government has added  in the Jammu and Kashmir Government Employees Conduct Rules-1971 : 

1. No Government employee shall engage in any criminal, dishonest, immoral and notoriously disgraceful conduct on social media which may be prejudicial to the Government”, read the new proviso notified vide SRO-525 issued by the General Administration Department.
2. No government employee through any post, tweet or otherwise discuss or criticise on social media any policy pursued or action taken by the government nor shall he in any manner participate in any such discussion or criticism that takes place on social media pages/communities or on micro blogs.
3. No government employee shall indulge in any activity on social media  for maintenance or under his care or control to undertake any activity on social media which is, or tends directly or indirectly to be, subversive of the government as by law established in the country or in the state
4. They shall also not use their personal social media accounts for any political activity or endorse the posts or tweets or blogs of any political figure and also shall not use their accounts in a matter that could reasonable be construed to imply that the Government endorses or sanctions their personal activities in any matter.
5. The employees must not post, comment or share public information on matters related to their work or the work of the department but must properly safeguard privileged, confidential, classified, privacy protected and/or sensitive departmental information. Moreover, they shall not tweet or share any electronic transmission.
6. Employees must not post, update, share or promote any status or post that may be contentious or has the potential to create governance or law and order issues or are seen to propogate anything which is anti-social, anti-national or illegal.
7. The Government employees should adhere to the guidelines to ensure against disciplinary action and consequent punishment as per J&K Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1956”, the guidelines said, adding “in case the violation involves an offence under law it will attract necessary legal action.
8. As per J&K Civil Services (Classification, Control and Appeal) Rules, 1956, the penalties like censure, fine, withholding of increments/promotion, reduction to a lower post, recovery from pay, premature retirement and dismissal from services can be imposed on the employees.

   The guidelines aim at providing guidance on the correct use of social media by Government employees thereby putting a check on information flow on the social media that employees share with others which happens in a contemporaneous manner.