Kerala govt suspends IAS officers K Gopalakrishnan and N Prasanth for disciplinary violations

By Aishwarya Nair | First Published Nov 12, 2024, 8:43 AM IST

The Kerala government on Monday (Nov 11) suspended Director of Industries K. Gopalakrishnan and Special Secretary of Agriculture N. Prasanth, citing disciplinary misconduct.

Thiruvananthapuram: The Kerala government on Monday suspended Director of Industries K. Gopalakrishnan and Special Secretary of Agriculture N. Prasanth over allegations of disciplinary misconduct. Gopalakrishnan is accused of creating a WhatsApp group comprising IAS officers, organized along religious lines. Meanwhile, Prasanth was suspended for posting personal comments on social media about Additional Chief Secretary Dr. A. Jayathilak.

'Mallu Hindu Officers' WhatsApp row: Police reject Gopalakrishnan’s hacking claim, no evidence found

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Gopalakrishnan previously reported that his mobile phone had been hacked following controversy over the creation of a WhatsApp group named 'Mallu Hindu Officers' on October 31, allegedly using his phone number. Some IAS officers added to the group raised objections to its purpose. However, according to the commissioner's report, the cyber forensics team was unable to confirm if the device had been hacked since it had been formatted.

Prasanth had earlier accused Jayathilak of damaging the careers and lives of subordinates who did not comply with his instructions. He went further, labeling his superior as mentally unstable and referring to him as a "psychopath." The remarks came after Jayathilak accused Prasanth of fabricating attendance records and consistently neglecting his duties as Special Secretary in the SC/ST Department. Despite prior warnings, Prasanth persisted with his online criticisms over the weekend, leading to a report from the Chief Secretary and his eventual suspension.

Both the IAS officers will also face departmental inquiries. Prasanth plans to approach the Administrative Tribunal, challenging his suspension for being issued without a show-cause notice.

The Chief Secretary maintained that no explanation was needed from Prasanth, as his derogatory remarks against Additional Chief Secretary Jayathilak were made publicly. Meanwhile, there were efforts from some IAS officers to mitigate the action against Gopalakrishnan, aiming to limit it to a warning. However, the government faced the risk of being accused of endorsing a soft Hindutva stance if it went lenient. To avoid such criticism, the decision was made to suspend both officers.

Kerala: WhatsApp group for 'Mallu Hindu' IAS officers causes uproar; later deleted

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