The State government is reportedly weighing whether or not to reinstate IAS officer Sriram Venkitaraman.
It did not confirm or deny news reports that the Health Department would post the IAS officer as coordinator of COVID-19 containment measures in States.
However, the purported move drew flak from the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) Opposition.
Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala and Kerala Pradesh Committee president Mullapally Ramachandran slammed the “clandestine” move allegedly orchestrated at the top levels of the bureaucracy.
Mr. Venkitaraman had come under a cloud after the police had named him as the prime accused in the controversial drunk driving accident that caused the death of journalist K. M. Basheer in Thiruvananthapuram in August last.
