Chief Minister directs Chief Secretary to hear N Prasanth's complaints

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In a significant development, the Chief Minister has directed Chief Secretary Sarada Muraleedharan to personally hear the complaints raised by suspended IAS officer N Prasanth IAS. The directive comes in the wake of ongoing departmental conflicts and a series of mutual allegations that have prolonged the case. A formal notice has been issued to Prasanth asking him to appear for the hearing scheduled for next week.

Prasanth was suspended in November last year while serving as Special Secretary in the Agriculture Department. He had submitted a letter demanding further clarifications in response to a show-cause notice issued by the Chief Secretary. The suspension was based on allegations that he defamed Additional Chief Secretary Jayathilak and former Director of the Industries Department K. Gopalakrishnan through Facebook posts. Initially suspended for two months, the period was extended by another four months in January.

Prasanth had alleged that the government was treating him unfairly and claimed that action was taken without even a preliminary inquiry or an opportunity to be heard. The situation became controversial when Prasanth, in response to a charge memo for disciplinary violations issued by the Chief Secretary, demanded further clarifications. He insisted that he would respond to the charge memo only after receiving answers to seven specific queries he had raised.