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IAS officer who quit post J-K lockdown receives chargesheet from Home Ministry

On Tuesday, in a series of tweets Gopinathan criticised the government of India for its actions in the valley and requested it to restore fundamental rights of the people of Kashmir.

IAS officer who quit post J-K lockdown receives chargesheet from Home Ministry

Former IAS officer Kannan Gopinathan (Photo: Facebook/Kannan Gopinathan)

Indian Administrative Officer Kannan Gopinathan, who quit his job after Centre abrogated Article 370 and imposed an unprecedented lockdown in Kashmir, received a memorandum for departmental inquiry issued by the Union Home Ministry to him two months after he submitted his resignation.
Gopinathan, who was the collector of Dadra and Nagar Haveli when he resigned, has been accused of insubordination.

On Tuesday, in a series of tweets Gopinathan criticised the government of India and requested it to restore the fundamental rights of the people of Kashmir.

An official from Daman had called him and asked him for his address. The official reportedly told him that he would receive a chargesheet. When Gopinathan said he did not own a home and lived in a rented place, the chargesheet was emailed to him.

Gopinathan went on to say, he had been told not to use any political influence. “Who is capable of politically influencing Ministry of Home Affairs other than Amit Shah?” he asked. “Now if only I could influence him. But let me try anyway. Sir, please restore fundamental rights in Kashmir.”

Gopinathan said it was no wonder that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had been allegedly upset with bureaucrats for wasting the first five years of his government. “After five years of enlightened leadership one would expect you to be masters in intimidation and targeted harassment at least,” said the former IAS officer.

The Home Ministry had earlier issued him a show-cause notice on July 8 after receiving a proposal from the UT government for allegedly “indulging in various acts of omission and commission”, including “act of insubordination” and “dereliction of duty.”

The Home Ministry had said Gopinathan had submitted his reply to the notice on July 31 before submitting his resignation, saying he had carried out his work with honesty and diligence and hence “I request that the proposal to initiate disciplinary action may kindly be dropped and filed.”

The IAS officer replied to the show-cause notice on July 31, denying charges of insubordination, dereliction of duty and dilatory tactics.

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