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While Gopalakrishnan was suspended for creating a religious-oriented WhatsApp group of government officials, Prasanth was taken to task for criticizing a senior IAS officer on social media.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan (File photo: X)
The Left government in Kerala on Monday suspended two IAS officers, K Gopalakrishnan and N Prasanth, for violating discipline, official sources said.
While Gopalakrishnan was suspended for creating a religious-oriented WhatsApp group of government officials, Prasanth was taken to task for criticizing a senior IAS officer on social media, they added.
They also said that Prime Minister Pinarayi Vijayan ordered the suspension of these officials based on the report he received from the Chief Secretary.
While Gopalakrishnan was the Director of Industries and Commerce, Prasanth was holding the post of Special Secretary in the Department of Agricultural Development and Farmers’ Welfare.
Prasanth recently took to Facebook accusing A Jayathilak, the Additional Chief Secretary, of “arranging baseless news reports” against him.
In his letter, Prasanth alleged that Jayathilak had become a “special journalist” and was working to discredit him by spreading baseless allegations in the media.
Attacking Jayathilak, the post reads, “I feel compelled to share important facts about Jayathilak, a senior IAS officer, that the public should know.
“Although I usually avoid discussing government issues in public, there seems to be no other option at this time. My aim is to reveal only those issues that the public has a right to know, in accordance with the Right to Information.” The issue came after a media report alleged that Prasanth was dying, saying that several important files from ‘Unnathi’–a program dedicated to the welfare of Scheduled Castes (SCs) and Scheduled Tribes (STs)–were mysteriously lost during his tenure. instead of being its CEO.
The report also said that Jayathilak has sent a report on the matter to Chief Minister Vijayan.
Prasanth, who has served as Kozhikode District Collector and other senior posts, is popularly known as ‘Collector Bro’ and had earlier taken to Facebook to refute the allegations leveled against him.
Regarding the allegations against Gopalakrishnan, the Kerala police conducted an investigation following his complaint that his WhatsApp account was used to create religious WhatsApp groups.
The Thiruvananthapuram city police conducted an investigation and sent a report to the state police chief.
Amidst reports quoting police suggesting that the IAS officer’s phone was not hacked, Thiruvananthapuram City Police Commissioner Sparjan Kumar said it was still unclear whether the device had been compromised, as it had been ‘reset.’ In the controversial WhatsApp group, officials from various communities were added, the group was called a Hindu community group.
In his complaint to the police, Gopalakrishnan said that the police had not joined the group in question.
Earlier, the Finance Minister of Kerala, K Rajan, had said that government officials should follow certain disciplines while working, and anyone who violates them will be dealt with strictly.
He said the government will not allow officials to work in violation of rules and regulations.
The minister was responding to reporters’ questions about Prasanth’s recent posts on Facebook against his senior colleague Jayathilak, which sparked controversy in the state.
Without naming any officials, Rajan said the government is taking the matter “very seriously” and the Chief Secretary will soon submit a report in this regard.
“After receiving this, the chief minister will take a firm decision on this,” he said.
(This story was not edited by News18 staff and was published by the syndicated news agency – PTI)
- Location :
Thiruvananthapuram, India
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