Suspended Kerala IAS officers face serious charges
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): The suspension orders issued by the Kerala government against two IAS officers, K Gopalakrishnan and N Prashant, cite violations of service rules and serious indiscipline, alleging that the former's action sowed disunity within the All India Service Cadre, while the latter's conduct undermined the public image of the state’s administrative machinery.
Gopalakrishnan was suspended for creating a religion-based WhatsApp group for government officials, and Prashant faced action for publicly criticising a senior IAS officer on social media.
In the suspension orders issued late Monday night, the government made it clear that the act of both civil service officers amounted to grave indiscipline and violation of various sections of the All India Service Conduct Rules, 1968.
The order said that it has come to the notice of the government that a WhatsApp group was created recently, of which Gopalakrishnan, Director of Industries, was stated to be the administrator of the said group.
The order, issued by Chief Secretary Sarada Muraleedharan, further stated that a police inquiry revealed that there was no evidence indicating that the mobile phone of Gopalakrishnan was hacked, as claimed by the officer.
It is also revealed that a repeated factory reset of the mobile phone was done by the officer himself before submitting his phones for forensic examination, according to the order.
"The Government, prima facie, is of the view that the said WhatsApp Group created by Gopalakrishnan K was intended to foment division, sow disunity and break the solidarity within the cadres of the All India Services in the State," it said.
It was also prima facie found to be creating communal formations and alignments within the cadres of the All India Services, the order added.
Meanwhile, in a separate order placing Agriculture Special Secretary N Prashant under suspension, the government accused the officer of making "derogatory statements" on social media against A Jayathilak IAS, Additional Chief Secretary, Finance Department.
As per the order issued by the Chief Secretary, these remarks amount to grave indiscipline and that such remarks undermine the public image of the administrative machinery in the state.
The remarks, prima facie, also have the potential of creating divisiveness and disaffection in the Indian Administrative Service in the state that can also affect service to the public, it said.
The government, in the order, also stated that these remarks were unbecoming of an officer borne in the cadre of the Indian Administrative Service.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday ordered the suspension of the officials based on the report he received from the Chief Secretary.
While Gopalakrishnan was the Director of Industries and Commerce, Prasanth held the responsibility of Special Secretary in the Department of Agriculture Development and Farmers' Welfare.
Prasanth recently took to Facebook to accuse A Jayathilak, the Additional Chief Secretary, of "orchestrating baseless" news reports against him.
In his post, Prasanth alleged that Jayathilak had become a "special reporter' and was working to undermine him by spreading unfounded allegations through the media.
Prasanth, who previously served as Kozhikode District Collector and in other top posts, is popularly known as 'Collector Bro' and had earlier posted on Facebook to refute the allegations against him.
Regarding the allegations against Gopalakrishnan, the Kerala police conducted an investigation following his complaint that his WhatsApp account was used to create religion-based WhatsApp groups.
The Thiruvananthapuram city police carried out an investigation and submitted a report to the state police chief.
Amid reports quoting the police suggesting that the IAS officer's phone was not hacked, Thiruvananthapuram City Police Commissioner Sparjan Kumar stated that it remains unclear whether the device was compromised, as it had been 'reset.'
In the controversial WhatsApp group, officers from various communities were added, and the group was labelled as a Hindu community group.
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Woman threatens to end life as police official refuses to accept love proposal, FIR registered
Bengaluru (PTI): A woman was booked on charges of obstructing a police inspector from discharging his official duties and threatening to commit suicide if he did not accept her love proposal, police said on Wednesday.
The 45-year-old inspector attached to the Ramamurthy Nagar Police Station here alleged that the woman repeatedly harassed him, they said.
According to his complaint, the harassment began on October 30, when he started receiving calls from an unknown woman from multiple phone numbers.
During these calls, she allegedly spoke incoherently and claimed to have close links with several highly placed individuals, including the Chief Minister, Deputy CM, Home Minister and other political leaders.
Police said the woman sent photographs via WhatsApp purportedly showing herself with these dignitaries and claimed she could use their influence to compel the inspector to accept her proposal. She also allegedly threatened to use her contacts against him if he refused.
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The inspector said that he advised her to visit the police station and submit a written complaint if she had any grievance. However, she did not do so and instead continued to repeatedly call and send messages, which disturbed his official duties, the FIR said.
According to the FIR, on November 7, the woman allegedly visited his office and handed over an envelope containing some tablets along with handwritten letters. The letters contained emotionally charged and inappropriate content, and the woman claimed they were written using her blood, indicating obsessive behaviour.
Despite being clearly informed that the number she was contacting was an official departmental number meant for public service, she allegedly continued making unnecessary calls and messages, causing mental harassment and obstruction to his day-to-day duties, he alleged.
During the inquiry, police learnt that the woman had allegedly exhibited similar behaviour with other police and government officials in the past, it stated.
On December 12, she allegedly went to his police station and shouted and threatened to commit suicide and ruin the inspector's career if he did not respond to her proposal, prompting him to lodge a complaint.
"Based on the complaint, a case was registered against the woman under Sections 132 (assault or criminal force to deter a public servant from discharge of duty), 351(2) (criminal intimidation) and 221 (obstructing a public servant in discharge of public functions) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita at the Ramamurthy Nagar Police Station. The matter is under investigation," police said.
