Overview
- Basavakalyana officials relieved assistant cook Pramod Kumar from a Backward Classes Welfare hostel after a WhatsApp complaint and photos showed him at an RSS route march.
- An official letter said staff paid from government funds, including contract hires, are barred from participating in such organisations under Karnataka’s conduct rules.
- The action follows last week’s suspension of Panchayat Development Officer Praveen Kumar K.P. in Raichur for attending an RSS centenary event, with a departmental inquiry underway.
- Authorities say viral images indicate more than 20 government employees joined the Basavakalyana march, including local headmasters and a college principal, and further reviews are in progress.
- The steps followed RDPR Minister Priyank Kharge’s request to the chief minister for disciplinary action, drawing BJP criticism as Tejasvi Surya pledged legal support citing past high court rulings.