Statue of slain leader Praveen Netru (Image/News18)
Nutana Kumari was among the 150 contractual employees who received termination orders last week when the new Congress government came to power on May 10. However, within 24 hours after the issue sparked an outcry, CM Siddaramaiah reinstated him as a ‘special case’.
Nutana Kumari, wife of slain Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) leader Praveen Netru, is eagerly waiting for a letter from the newly installed Congress government in Karnataka, which she hopes will give her the post of Deputy Commissioner (DC) of Mangaluru. shall be reinstated in the office as a temporary staff member. ,
Amidst the anticipation, she also hopes for a permanent job that will provide her stability regardless of who handles affairs in the state.
Ranjit Salyan, a relative of Netru, expressed hope that Kumari would secure a permanent position as promised by Nalin Kumar Kateel, the BJP MP representing the Dakshina Kannada Lok Sabha seat. The Netru family believes that a permanent posting or job will provide the financial security Kumar needs.
“We are hopeful that she will get a permanent job in the New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT) as promised by our leader Kateel. This government job is temporary and is hanging like a sword over his head. He needs a permanent job and we hope that the job in NMPT, which is under the Central Government, will give him the financial stability he needs.
Kumari was among the 150 contractual employees who got their termination orders last week on May 10 when the new Congress government came to power. Paving the way for a new set of contracts.
However, within 24 hours of the issue, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah announced that Kumari would be reinstated as a ‘special case’.
“I have not received my appointment letter yet. I would not like to comment on the matter,” Kumari said when News18 contacted her.
Kateel said he would request the central government to give Kumari a job in one of the central government establishments in Mangaluru, such as the New Mangalore Port Trust (NMPT), instead of making her a victim of “vendetta politics by the Congress”.
Netru’s family accepted the positive response from the government this time but remained apprehensive about the future.
“Since this job is not permanent, its future may also depend on the whims and fancies of the present government. She can lose this job any time and it is not good,” said Salyan, Netru’s cousin.
Responding to the BJP’s allegations of political vendetta, Siddaramaiah said: “Not only Praveen Netru’s wife, more than 150 contract workers have already been dismissed from service. There is no government interference in this..It is a special Considering the matter, Kumari will be re-appointed on humanitarian grounds.
Kumari was given a job as a senior assistant (Group C) in Bengaluru in the office of previous Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai after her husband Praveen Netru was brutally murdered in the coastal town of Bellare in July 2022. On her request, Kumari was subsequently posted to the office of the Deputy Commissioner, Dakshina Kannada, where she started work in October 2022.
When Kateel was asked why his position was not made permanent by the Bommai government when he was first appointed, the Dakshina Kannada MP clarified that the previous BJP government found some legal hurdles to regularize his services Was. They said they were working on it but then state elections were announced.
Kumari’s sacking provoked protests from BJP leaders, who termed it as a vendetta by the Congress. However, government officials clarified that Kumari’s employment order states that her tenure will be till the tenure of the chief minister or until further notice.
