THOOTHUKUDI: Days after the executive officer (EO) of Udangudi town panchayat, Praba, collapsed inside her office allegedly following arguments with a few councillors, the public have appealed to the district administration seeking probe and verification of the office CCTV footage.
According to sources, the aforesaid incident took place on January 11 amid an ordinary meeting at the Udangudi town panchayat office. Prabha, who failed to take part in the meeting, was found collapsed at her office, and was attended to by the nurses of a neighbouring private hospital. The incident occurred after councillors, including Anbu Rani, picked up an argument with Prabha over her skipping monthly panchayat meetings, sources added.
"The EO has been skipping meetings for the past three months following differences with the panchayat president. On November 27, 2023, the councillors had passed a resolution to transfer Prabha and clerk Muthukumar. However, she did not sign it and continued to skip subsequent meetings, to avoid attesting, so that the resolution could not be submitted to the collector. The EO does not yield to the needs of the elected members, and hence they wanted to transfer her," sources from the panchayat office said.
"Councillor Anbu Rani was tasked to bring Prabha to the meeting hall to record her signature on the resolution to transfer the latter. That is when she collapsed. Prabha has only six months left to retire from service," a source added.
Responding to the issue, one of the councillors told TNIE that police should inspect CCTV footage from the office and town panchayat premises, and conduct a detailed probe to ascertain why the EO collapsed suddenly. Another councillor alleged that the CCTVs were disconnected to avoid recording the happenings. Also, the residents demanded the district administration to look into the issue seriously, citing lack of transparency in the office affairs.
Meanwhile, the town panchayat councillors have lodged a complaint against V Gunaselan, social activist, with Kulasekarapattinam police accusing him of leaking the panchayat's affairs on social media. However, out of 18, five councillors including DMK party members have refused to sign the complaint.
It may also be noted that Udangudi town panchayat was recently in the news after a conservancy worker, Sudalaimadan, died by suicide on March 17, 2023 after allegedly being abetted by the mother-in-law of the panchayat president. An FIR was registered against the panchayat president and her in-laws in connection with the suicide, and the case is pending before the Thoothukudi SC/ST court.
Speaking to TNIE, a senior DMK functionary from Tiruchendur said that Gunaselan has been extending legal support for Thangammal, wife of Sudalaimadan, to get justice. It did not go down well with the supporters of the panchayat president, he noted.
Meanwhile, an audio circulated among top leaders, also in possession of TNIE, revealed that the Udangudi civic body had tried to convince Thangammal to withdraw the case pending against the panchayat president, after promising to provide her Rs 25 lakh cash and a house. The person in the audio is also heard appealing to her to distance herself from Gunaselan. "They are targeting me as I am supporting the victims who suffered due to the panchayat administration," said Gunaselan. However, the Town Panchayat Assistant Director said that he has not received any complaint in this regard.