THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Additional Chief Secretary (Home) Nalini Netto has recommended stern disciplinary action, including suspension, of Kollam city police commissioner P. Prakash and two other officers in connection with the Puttingal fire mishap.
The Home Secretary's report sparked off an IAS-IPS spar with Ms. Netto expressing displeasure to Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala for seeking state police chief T.P. Senkumar’s opinion on her report as he was below her as per hierarchy. Mr. Senkumar expressed his displeasure that despite being a joint lapse of the police and revenue officials, the additional chief secretary had only held the police officials responsible for the lapses in preventing the competitive firework.
It is also leant that the police intelligence wing had given a report to the Kollam city police commissioner as well as higher-ups in the intelligence wing on March 30 that it was a competitive firework that was going to take place at Puttingal.
Ms. Netto recommended action against Mr. Prakash, Chathanoor assistant commissioner Santosh and circle inspector Chandra Kumar on the basis of the reports submitted by six agencies, including the state police chief, fire and rescue services and local police officials.
It is learnt that she had conveyed to the Home Minister that she had prepared her report on the basis of Mr. Senkumar’s report too and that being the officer in charge of the Home Department, she could not frame the lapses on the part of the revenue officials.
