IAS officer Kannan Gopinathan, who shot to fame during Kerala floods, resigns over restrictions

New Delhi, Aug 25: A 33-year-old Indian Administrative Service Kannan Gopinathan from the AGMUT cadre, who came into the limelight for his anonymous participation in the flood relief efforts in Kerala last year, has resigned from the prestigious government post.

While stating his reasons, IAS officer Gopinathan said one of them was denial of "fundamental rights" to lakhs of people in Jammu and Kashmir for weeks after special status was scrapped from the state earlier this month.

Gopinathan, a secretary of key departments in Dadra and Nagar Haveli, was instrumental in transforming a loss-making government electricity distribution firm into a profit-making one.

In a letter addressed to Union Home Secretary, the 2012-batch IAS officer wrote, "I, Kannan G, IAS officer of 2012 batch, AGMUT cadre, hereby submit my letter of resignation from Indian Administrative Service. I humbly request you to kindly accept my resignation and relieve me."

The officer, who has been serving as the secretary of the power, urban development and town and country planning departments of the union territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli sent his resignation to the Union Home Secretary on August 21.

Media reports quoted him as saying that the "clampdown of the fundamental rights" in Jammu and Kashmir had prompted him to put in his papers.