BANGALORE: Quieten down or quit, Home Minister K J George will tell P Ravindranath, the Additional Deputy-General of Police, on Friday.
Accused of clicking lewd pictures of a woman sitting in a cafe on Monday, Ravindranath has been talking about a conspiracy, embarrassing the Police Department and the government. By his reckoning, Police Commissioner Raghavendra Auradkar hatched a plot to defame him. On Thursday, he went a step further and accused Auradkar of practising untouchability. (Details on Page 3)
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, at a meeting late on Thursday, directed George to put an end to the ugly row.
“If Ravindranath goes on, the government will have no option but to ask him to put in his papers in the proper format so that the state government can send them to Delhi,” a source told Express. All India service officers in the IAS and IPS are formally appointed under the hand and seal of the President and only he has the power to accept or reject their resignation. Ravindranath’s earlier resignation, which he had handed to Director-General of Police Lalrokhuma Pachau, explains the circumstances leading to his quitting, which is not acceptable, a minister who was at the Chief Minister’s house told Express. Siddaramaiah, who does not want to intervene, has asked George to convince Ravindranath to calm down and resume work.
George confirmed he had summoned Ravindranath for a discussion on Friday. On television earlier in the day, Ravindranath said the government had transferred him out prematurely. “The government will give him a new posting as another officer has been appointed ADGP of KSRP. Ravindranath is free to approach the Central Administrative Tribunal if he is not happy with the posting,” he told Express.
George said he would not initiate disciplinary action against Ravindranath for defying him on television. “In a democracy, everyone should be given an audience,” he said.
The CID has been given the responsibility of investigating the episode. The government will take action after receiving the report, George said.
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