Controversial ‘WhatsApp group for Hindu IAS officers’ stirs row

An IAS officer alleged that his personal WhatsApp number was hacked and used to create a religious group, with him as the group admin. He filed a complaint to the Thiruvananthapuram City Police Commissioner and requested an inquiry into the matter.
A source close to the officer, quoted by news agency PTI, said officers from various communities were added to the controversial WhatsApp group, which was labelled as a Hindu community group.
Sources added that upon noticing this, the officer immediately filed a complaint and dismantled the group.
India Today reported the civil servant was identified as K Gopalakrishnan. The report claimed that the WhatsApp groups formed using the phone number of Gopalakrishnan had names such as ‘Mallu Hindu officers’ and ‘Mallu muslim officers’.
In his complaint, the officer stated that he had not added any officers to the group in question. The incident occurred three days ago. He reportedly said he learnt about these groups only after a friend alerted him.
The WhatsApp group reportedly included only Hindu officers in the cadre. It was, however, disbanded a day after its creation, Times of India reported. “There are several WhatsApp groups among officers, but a WhatsApp group on religious lines is something new,” a senior officer told TOI.
Kerala Industries Minister P Rajeeve said on Monday the state government will examine the incident involving the controversial formation of a WhatsApp group for Hindu IAS officers.
Describing the incident as “serious,” Rajeeve said that community-based divisions are highly concerning.
“The government will look into this matter. There is a general code of conduct for IAS officers, which falls under the Public Administration department. We are currently examining the situation. Let’s review and determine what needs to be done,” he told reporters in Delhi on Monday.
(With inputs from agencies)