Suspended IAS officer Prasanth slams Kerala Chief Secretary on transfer order of another bureaucrat

Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 10 (IANS) Suspended IAS officer N. Prasanth on Wednesday strongly criticised the Kerala government’s transfer order of Dr. B. Ashok, calling it a blatant violation of laws and service rules.

In a Facebook post, he remarked that any IAS officer could see the illegality at first glance, sarcastically referring to Chief Secretary Dr A. Jayathilak as “George Sir.”

According to Prasanth, only two types of people could issue such an order — those with no legal or basic procedural knowledge, or those who hold utter contempt for the legal system.

He claimed more than seven rules were clearly violated, a fact now acknowledged by the court.

Since the case is under judicial consideration, he said he would refrain from further comment.

Prasanth’s explosive post comes a day after the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), Ernakulam Bench, stayed the order appointing Dr. Ashok as Chairman and Managing Director of the Kerala Transport Development Finance Corporation (KTDFC).

The Tribunal issued the interim order on a petition filed by Ashok, who challenged the General Administration Department’s directive displacing him from the post of Agriculture Principal Secretary and Agricultural Production Commissioner.

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He argued that the appointment violated the All India Service (Cadre) Rules, as the KTDFC post carried a lower pay scale than his cadre position.

The CAT made it clear that Ashok will continue in his existing post until further orders and directed the state government to produce the original transfer file in a sealed cover.

The matter has been posted for hearing on September 16.

This marks the second time the Tribunal has intervened in Ashok’s transfers.

Earlier, it had quashed his reassignment from Agriculture Principal Secretary to Chairman of the Local Self-Government Reforms Commission.

Ashok has alleged repeated attempts to remove him from cadre posts in violation of service rules.

Prasanth, currently under suspension for his earlier criticism of the Chief Secretary, used the occasion to launch a wider attack on the bureaucracy.

He accused certain officials of climbing the career ladder not through work but by blindly serving those in power.

Such conduct, he said, shows contempt for the law and reflects a tendency to misuse authority against subordinates and citizens, even deriving “sadistic pleasure” from it.

He warned that critics who cite rules risk harassment through fabricated cases, while repeated violations by senior officials are often brushed aside as “bureaucratic infighting.”

Allowing such individuals to remain in service, he said, is a threat to society and demands greater public scrutiny.

(IANS/NS)

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