The password leak scam at the Kozhikode Corporation has led to severe protests inside and outside the office, putting the authorities under pressure to conduct a proper inquiry into the matter.
The corporation officials carried out a protest inside the office demanding that the suspension of four officials in the case be revoked. They also alleged that the officials were made scapegoats.
“We had pointed out the problems in Sanchaya software several times. But the Secretary refused to find a solution. Now the authorities are trying to save the real culprits by putting the blame on four officials,” alleged Anil Kumar T., district president of the Kerala Municipal and Corporation Staff Union (KMCSU).
The employees, under the aegis of the combined protest committee consisting of KMCSU and Kerala Municipal and Corporation Staff Association (KMCSA), staged a sit-in before the Secretary’s office and held an explanation meeting in the office lobby on Monday.
One of the suspended officials is the secretary of one of the unions while the other is a State committee member of the other organisation. “We are not supporting any official unnecessarily. Let them be punished if they have committed the crime. But here, this is a case of the witness being accused, while the real culprits are yet to be tracked,” Mr. Anil Kumar alleged.
He said that one of the suspended officials was about to retire in six months and had never used a computer in his lifetime. “He was unaware of a login id until he was suspended,” Mr. Anil Kumar said, adding that the Information Kerala Mission was too negligent about safeguarding the login information, as many retired officials still had active login ids.
The combined protest committee is planning to hold a token strike on Tuesday from 12.30 p.m. to 2 p.m., and another on Wednesday by going on leave, and an indefinite strike from Thursday onwards, if the corporation does not take the necessary action.
Protest carried out
Meanwhile the BJP carried out a protest before the corporation on Monday demanding independent and comprehensive investigation into the issue. State vice president of the party P. Raghunath, who inaugurated the protest, alleged that the CPI(M) has turned into a party of capitalists and mafia, and that the scam is a reflection of this. The protest march that started from the CH Overbridge premises was blocked by the police at the corporation office gate, which led to a minor scuffle. The corporation parliamentary party leader of the BJP and Mahila Morcha State General Secretary Navya Haridas presided over the event.
The District Congress Committee had earlier alleged that the suspended officials were small fries and that there was a huge lobby behind the malpractices. The Congress has demanded a judicial inquiry into the matter.
On the other hand, the corporation has formed an inquiry committee headed by the Additional Secretary and consisting of the Deputy Secretary and Executive Engineer of Town Planning to look into the matter. Besides, the Secretary has filed a case with the Kozhikode Town Police.
