Former IAS officer Kannan Gopinathan who quit over Kashmir issue detained on way to AMU

Gopinathan, a 2012-batch IAS officer hailing from Kerala, had quit in August citing ‘denial of freedom of expression’ in Kashmir. (File)

Former IAS officer Kannan Gopinathan, who submitted his resignation over “denial of freedom of expression in Jammu & Kashmir” following the dilution of Article 370, claimed that he was detained by the Uttar Pradesh police on Saturday. Gopinathan claimed that he was detained while he was en route to attend an anti-Citizenship law protest at Aligarh Muslim University.

The former bureaucrat took to Twitter, stating that he had been detained by police officials in Agra. “The order shared is for Aligarh district. But I am being detained in Agra,” Gopinathan said in his tweet. 

This is the order shared by the CO. pic.twitter.com/7k90BNG441

— Kannan Gopinathan (@naukarshah) January 4, 2020

The notification issued by the Aligarh District Magistrate directed the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP)  to ensure that Gopinathan was not allowed to enter the district. Citing previous incidents, the order stated that the law and order situation was compromised during similar visits by Swaraj India leader Yogendra Yadav and Dr Kafeel Khan. 

Taking me to this Dhaba. Police have been very cordial and respectful. Saying they are just doing as per order. pic.twitter.com/aHyeGIUrDD

— Kannan Gopinathan (@naukarshah) January 4, 2020

Gopinathan, who has been at the forefront of anti-CAA protests in Mumbai, was invited as a panellist to address a gathering in AMU on Saturday along with Kavitha Krishnan and others like Fahad Ahmed, former General Secretary of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences. Ahmed was also detained by the police on his way to the university.

In November, last year, the Central government had filed a chargesheet against Gopinanthan, accusing him of insubordination. The “chargesheet” accuses him of “adopting dilatory tactics in the discharge of his official duties and displaying insubordination”. He has also been charged with “unauthorisedly communicating with print, electronic and social media on the issues of Government policies”.

Gopinathan, a 2012-batch IAS officer hailing from Kerala who held the post of secretary of key departments like power and non-conventional energy sources in the Dadra and Nagar Haveli administration, had quit in August.