Kerala lady IPS officer triggers storm with poem

Last month,Sandhya,who has five published works to her credit,wrote a poem in Malayalam weekly Kalakaumudi,titled I can be only like this. The 50-lined social criticism raised annoying questions for politicians and media,also alluding to other issues. As the poem triggered a controversy,DGP K S Balasubramaniam sought an explanation from her,on whether she had obtained prior permission from seniors.

Days after the deadline to submit the explanation expired,Sandhya last week wrote to the DGP,justifying her action. In her explanation,she said the all-India service rules do not demand prior permission for a literary work and her poem fell in that category. It is learnt that the DGP has referred the matter to the government to take a decision.

The issue got a twist when Sandhya published another poem in Malayalam News,a Gulf-based daily. The editor commented on the poem as the one written after she submitted the explanation. Titled Merge in the blue horizon,Sandhya asks how long you will reign in the whirlwind and roaring downpour.