§ MR. BUCHANAN (Edinburgh, W.)asked the Under Secretary of State for India, Whether the late senior member of the Madras Civil Service and senior member of Council in the Government of Madras has been compelled to resign because he was unable to meet the charges brought against him, of having infringed the terms of the Civil Service Covenant forbidding the holding of land by Civil servants; whether other Madras Civil servants are known to be land-owners, or shareholders in Land Companies, or otherwise interested in land speculation within the Presidency, or in Native States under the Madras Government, all of which practices are forbidden by the Civil Service Covenant or the Orders of the Government of India; whether Civil servants who have notified these breaches of the covenant to the Madras Government have been subjected to most unfair treatment, that has been acknowledged by, and partially redressed by, the Secretary of State; and, whether the Secretary of State will order a general inquiry into the subject, or take such steps as are necessary for the cessation of these irregularities, the future strict observance of the covenant, and the full protection of those Civil servants who, in the discharge of their duty, are bound to inform the superior 523 authorities of eases of infringement of the covenant?
§ THE UNDER SECRETARY OF STATE (Sir JOHN GORST) (Chatham)Charges of the kind stated were brought against the gentleman referred to, and before any decision was arrived at he tendered his resignation, which was accepted. To the second and third Question my answer is, No. Such steps as are necessary to insure the future strict observation of the Regulation in question have already been taken by the Secretary of State.