In a rare move in Kerala's administrative history, IAS officer N. Prasanth has sent a legal notice against Chief Secretary Sharada Muraleedharan, Additional Chief Secretary A. Jayathilak, Industries Director K. Gopalakrishnan, and a local newspaper. The notice alleges serious offences, including forgery, fabrication of documents, tampering with official records, and criminal conspiracy.
The core of Prasanth's allegations revolves around an ex-parte inquiry report prepared by A. Jayathilak, during Prasanth’s tenure as the founding CEO of ‘Unnathi’. The report alleged missing files and irregularities in attendance. According to the legal notice, this allegedly fraudulent report was neither approved by the government nor based on verified documents. Instead, it was purportedly aimed at tarnishing Prasanth's reputation, who had conceptualized Unnathi as a unique social empowerment initiative operating entirely on a zero-budget and zero-staffing model.
The report prepared by A. Jayathilak is based on two critical letters, which, the notice claims, were fabricated and uploaded to the government’s e-office system. Prashant alleges that the metadata and timestamps from the system reveal that two undated, unsigned, and unnumbered letters were fabricated simultaneously and uploaded from Jayathilak's office after months of delay. The notice alleges that this forgery was hurriedly executed in August, just before Jayathilak and Gopalakrishnan were set to leave the department, with Gopalakrishnan signing these letters.
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According to Prasanth, a government letter dated May 14, 2024 indicates that all files related to Unnathi were in the possession of these officials, disproving the contents of the fabricated letters that alleged missing files. The notice argues that such fraudulent actions by Jayathilak and Gopalakrishnan are punishable under Sections 238, 239, and 336 of the BNSS and constitute a violation of the All India Services (Conduct) Rules, 1968.
The notice points out that although the chief secretary was formally informed about these offences on November 14, 2024, no action was taken, allowing the perpetrators to continue manipulating official records. Prashant submitted a complaint to the chief secretary on November 14, requesting action on the matter. His legal notice asserts that under Section 59 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) of 2023, any public servant aware of crimes such as forgery and tampering with official documents is legally obligated to report and act on them.
