2 Kerala fire officials suspended, 3 shifted for training PFI men

The fire force service association said that earlier also such training was imparted to many other organisations and it was unfair to single out these officers.

The Kerala government on Sunday suspended two fire force officials and transferred three others for training Popular Front of India (PFI) workers in Aluva in Ernakulam district on Wednesday (March 30).

A circular from the office of chief minister (CM) Pinarayi Vijayan said that the government viewed the incident seriously and two officers — regional officer K K Shaiju and district fire officer K Jogi — were suspended and three others (fire men) transferred, pending departmental inquiry.

A controversy had erupted in the state after photos of their training session were widely shared on social media platforms. Later, director general of police (DGP) (fire) B Sandhya submitted a report to the state government recommending action against the five officials saying it was done without permission of the higher authorities.

But the fire force service association said that earlier also such training was imparted to many other organisations and it was unfair to single out these officers.

Leader of opposition V D Satheesan and BJP state president K Surendran had sought action against the officials for training cadres of an outfit which has a shady past. But the PFI said that the issue was blown out of proportion by some people with “vested interests” A fundamentalist outfit, PFI’s role was suspected in many recent unrests, including the protest seeking permission to wear hijab by girl students in neighbouring Karnataka.