Secretary (Economic Affairs) as Finance Secretary doesn’t deal with expenditure proposals from the Ministry of Defence; Rather it is Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance which deals with financial sanctions relating to all the Ministries of the Government of India

Shri Rajiv Mehrishi, joined Department of Economic Affairs, Ministry of Finance as Secretary on 31.10.2014. Being the senior most Secretary among the five Secretaries of the five Departments of the Ministry, viz. Economic Affairs, Expenditure, Financial Services, Revenue and Investment & Public Assets Management of Ministry of Finance, he was designated as the Finance Secretary on 11.11.2014. He continued as Secretary (Economic Affairs) & Finance Secretary till 31.08.2015 when he demitted office.

It is a matter of convention that the senior most Secretary is designated as Finance Secretary and while he assumes a co-ordination role, he continues as Secretary of his own Department.

It is pertinent to point-out here that it is the Department of Expenditure, Ministry of Finance which deals with financial sanctions relating to all the Ministries of the Government of India and in that capacity, any files relating to defence procurement would be dealt with by the Secretary, Department of Expenditure and not by Shri Rajiv Mehrishi as Secretary, Department of Economic Affairs.

To claim that Secretary (Economic Affairs) as Finance Secretary would have dealt with the expenditure proposals from the Ministry of Defence is totally a figment of imagination and stretch of facts.

Finance Secretary role does not encompass defence expenditure sanctions; Department of Expenditure handles financial approvals. The senior-most Secretary is designated as Finance Secretary for coordination while remaining head of his Department; financial sanctions for expenditure proposals, including defence procurement, are dealt with by the Department of Expenditure and not by the Secretary (Economic Affairs) acting as Finance Secretary.