Collectorate staff’s death and doctor’s illness take a political turn in Kerala after Pinarayi Vijayan’s social media post

The death of a senior clerk at the Kasaragod Collectorate and the illness of a senior paediatrician at Kannur Government Medical College have assumed a political dimension following Kerala Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan’s Facebook post linking the two incidents to alleged harassment of government employees.

While Mr. Vijayan criticised what he described as politically motivated transfers and intimidation of officials, the police investigation into the death of the Kasaragod employee, Ashalatha, has so far found no specific incident, person, or act of harassment cited in the woman’s dying declaration.

District Police Chief P. Nidhinraj said her dying declaration was recorded while she was in critical condition. She reportedly spoke about mental difficulties at home and at her workplace but did not name any person or identify any particular incident as the reason for taking the extreme step.