Daijiworld Media Network - Ballari
Ballari, Feb 1: In what may be termed as a victory to people power, DySP of Kudligi Anupama Shenoy, who was transferred allegedly at the behest of minister Parameshwara Naik, has been reinstated in the same post.
Anupama had been transferred allegedly by minister Naik as she had disconnected his call after waiting for him to come on the phone for over 40 seconds, so as to answer her superior who had called at the same time. This had angered the minister who called her back and took her to task for 'disrespecting' him.
Though the minister denied the incident, he later boasted about his role in getting Anupama transferred in a meeting with his supporters. The video of the minister claiming responsibility for the transfer went viral, and in no time, the issue attracted nationwide attention. People in Ballari and elsewhere descended on the streets demanding reinstatement of Anupama. The opposition BJP also made the most of it and demanded Parameshwara Naik's immediate ouster.
Anupama was then reportedly 'sent on forced leave' for 15 days, and an order was issued that she was would be posted in Indi of Vijayapura district soon. DGP Om Prakash had dismissed reports of her 'forced' leave and said that she would be taking up her new post at Indi soon, but refused to comment on why she had been transferred abruptly.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had defended the abrupt transfer calling it an "administrative matter".
Home minister and state Congress Chief G Parameshwara had also said the DySP has not been transferred and she has been sent on OOD (on official duty), calling it 'natural' in an administrative set up.
The claim by minister Naik, the district minister in charge, to party workers in Hadagali assembly constituency, had come as an embarrassment to the Congress-led state government as the video surfaced, just a few days after the minister rejected any role in the transfer as "far from the truth."
On February 1, bowing to pressure from people as well as media, the police department issued an order stating that Anupama's transfer to Indi has been withdrawn with immediate effect and she would now be reinstated to her former post as DySP of Kudligi. The order has been signed by director general and inspector general of Karnataka police.
The order stated that Anupama would continue to discharge her duties in Kudligi sub-division in Ballari district, the same position she held prior to her transfer, and asked the official concerned to submit a report about her reporting to the duty.
Earlier in the day, a group of women activists, rallying behind Anupama, sought the intervention of President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, National Women Commission chairperson Lalitha Kumaramangalam, Congress President Sonia Gandhi and party vice-president Rahul Gandhi in the issue.
With Inputs from PTI