Bairampalli gram panchayat office closed on New Year Day

Udupi: An unusual spectacle of a locked Bairampalli Gram Panchayat office, in Udupi district, greeted villagers on Wednesday -- the first day of new year,

The office had remained locked as Vasanthi serving as data entry operator-cum-clerk, Sumana serving as bill collector and Manohar Naik serving as Valve operator did not attend work citing harassment by a panchayat member.

Despite submitting complaints to Udupi Taluk Panchayat Executive Officer (EO) Vijaya and Udupi Zilla Panchayat (ZP) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Prateek Bayal, their grievances had been ignored.

The staff had warned they would stop reporting to work from January 1 onwards, if their grievances were not addressed. On Wednesday, they carried out their threats and skipped work claiming that their complaints had not been resolved so far.

The three staff members declaring that they were under severe “mental pressure” had submitted their resignation letters on December 19, 2024. Panchayat member, Santhosh Kumar Bairampalli, denied the allegations.

He claimed the Bairampalli Panchayat Development Officer (PDO) Sumana had been strict in curbing corruption in panchayat office from the day she had assumed charge. This had left some staff and panchayat members nursing an animosity towards PDO.

“These three staff members, with the support of others, are preventing us from ensuring transparency. I will not succumb to such pressure tactics,” Santosh Kumar declared. Gram Panchayat president Prasad Mallya said a panchayat member and PDO) Sumana, had caused mental harassment to the three staff members.

Although he had drawn the CEO Prateek Bayal's attention to the issue, no solution had been reached. “As a result the office remained closed until afternoon causing many inconveniences to public who had visited the panchayat office," President admitted.

"After a video clipping of the closed office went viral on social media, Udupi taluk panchayat Executive Officer (EO) rushed to the spot and opened the panchayat office in the afternoon  with help of a spare key after a video of the closed office went viral on social media,” Mallya said.

Panchayat President Mallya intends  to meet ZP CEO on Thursday to discuss steps on ensuring that the office functions smoothly.