Kerala Chief Secretary has issued show-cause notices to seven senior officials of the government secretariat who participated in the Raj Bhavan march held by the LDF against Governor Arif Mohammed Khan.
The chief secretary in the notice has asked the government employees to cite as to why disciplinary action should not be taken against them for participating in the protest march led by LDF before the Raj Bhavan, violating service rules. As per the Kerala government employees service rules, the employees should not engage in any political activities during their service period.
BJP state president K Surendran alleged that the Secretariat staff took part in the LDF’s Raj Bhavan march held against the Governor on 15 November. BJP Thiruvananthapuram district president VV Rajesh submitted a complaint to the Governor seeking action against the government employees who participated in the Raj Bhavan march. Along with the complaint, the names of the officials and pictures of them participating in the march were given to the Governor. The Governor has handed over the complaint to the Chief Secretary.
The Governor’s Principal Secretary has the other day written to the chief secretary enquiring about the action taken against the officers who participated in the Raj Bhavan march, violating service rules. It is after receiving this letter that the chief secretary has issued show cause notice to the employees participating in the Raj Bhavan march.
It has been reported that P Honey, additional secretary of the Public Administration Department and secretary of Kerala Secretariat Association is among those who have been issued the show cause notice.
Thousands of Left Democratic Front (LDF) workers marched to Raj Bhavan on 15 November under the aegis of the Vidyabhasa Samrakshana Samiti (Education Protection Council) in protest against Governor Arif Mohammed Khan’s alleged trespasses on the jurisdictional autonomy of the universities in the state.