Notice to Minister Manju on office issue

The Hassan district administration has served notices on A. Manju, district in charge Minister, and Executive Engineer of the Public Works Department, following reports of the Minister’s office still being in existence on the premises of Travellers’ Bungalow (TB) in the city.

B.R. Poornima, Additional Deputy Commissioner and Assistant District Electoral Officer, issued both the notices on Saturday, seeking an explanation before 10 a.m. on Monday.

Earlier in the day, there was high drama at the Minister’s office.

The flying squad appointed to enforce the model code of conduct reached the TB, after they learnt that private staff of the Minister were working in the office.

Representatives of the media and the flying squad could notice a couple of people working inside the office, while it was locked from outside.

The officers contacted the personal assistant of the Minister over the phone to enquire about the keys to open the doors. However, there was no response.

The notice served to the Minister said the office should have been closed after the poll code came into effect. Keeping the office open was a clear violation of the code.

In the notice addressed to the Executive Engineer, the administration maintained that with the poll code coming into effect, the PWD should have closed the Minister’s office immediately.

Allowing the office to run was a clear violation of the code, it said.

The officer had been asked to reply by Monday morning, with a caution that failing to reply within the stipulated time might attract action as per rules.