Hyderabad Mayor Accused Of Misusing Power to Sack Sanitation Employees

HYDERABAD: Mayor Gadwal Vijayalakshmi has been accused of misusing her powers and removing three sanitation employees belonging to  Circle 18 Panjagutta. The Secretary of Communist Party of India (Marxist) M Srinivas alleged that their places were filled with her maid family members in those posts. The CPI  in a letter written to the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) commissioner DS Lokesh Kumar demanded that they be reinstated.

However, the GHMC on Monday clarified that sanitary field assistant (SFA) K Sai Baba was sacked from his duty for committing irregularities and also sanitary workers L Rama Devi and V Bharathi were also sacked from their duties as these two persons did not attend the duties from January 1 to April 20. The officials also clarified that no one was appointed in these places till date.

According to the petition, the Khairatabad Zonal Commissioner issued orders on June 22 dismissing Sanitation workers V Bharathi, L Ramadevi and SFA (Sanitary Field Assistant) Saibaba working in the Panjagutta area and appointing their family members of those working at the mayor's house.

 According to the petition, Bharathi, who has been working as a sanitation worker for 15 years, was admitted to Khammam Hospital on April 20 as she was affected with Coronavirus and took her daughter Ramadevi, who also works as a sanitation worker, along with her to the hospital. Authorities said the two resumed duty on May 11th but were sacked from work. He said that they have been working without pay since then and asked for the conduct of an inquiry and take action against the officials responsible.

The matter went viral in WhatsApp groups. In this context, the Jubilee Hills Deputy Commissioner issued a statement that SFA Saibaba was dismissed for misconduct and Ramadevi and Bharati for being unofficially absent from January to April 20 this year. He said SFA Saibaba had illegally registered attendance on biometrics even though they were not attending to duties. Notices were sent twice to attend the hearing on the matter but he did not appear.  But in the copy of the order (as issued on June 22) along with the petition submitted by the CPM secretary to the Srinivas commissioner states that the places of Ramadevi and Bharathi were allegedly replaced by the GHMC with the relatives of servants working at the Mayor’s house.

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