ADM's death: Kannur Collector reiterates that Divya attended send-off meeting uninvited

Thiruvananthapuram: Kannur district Collector Arun K Vijayan on Tuesday reiterated that he had not invited CPI(M) leader and former district panchayat president P P Divya to the transfer farewell meeting of late Assistant District Magistrate (ADM) Naveen Babu.

The IAS officer said he had received a phone call from Divya before the meeting held at the district collectorate, and he had already handed over his call record details to the investigators.

Naveen Babu's suicide, occurring hours after Divya's remarks linking him to corruption during the send-off meeting organised at the district collectorate, has sparked a political uproar in the southern state.

As part of the investigation into Babu's death, police recorded the statement of the Kannur Collector after reaching his official residence here on Monday night.

Speaking to reporters here on Tuesday morning, Vijayan admitted that the investigators asked him whether Divya was invited to the farewell programme.

"It was also part of the statement..There was a phone call. I am not intending to reveal its details here, as these are all under investigation," he said.

The collector said whether it is a police investigation or a departmental inquiry, let the final report come, and then everything will get clear.

While replying to a query, the officer reiterated his earlier statement that he had not invited Divya to the send-off function.

He said he has given the statement in this regard to the investigators also.

The collector further said that he had a very good working relationship with the ADM and he had no knowledge of any allegations against the late officer.

He also said that he had done the scrutiny of the file of a petrol pump, in connection with which corruption allegations had been levelled against the ADM, and he had no knowledge of whether there was any delay in giving it a non-objection certificate.

CPI(M) leader P P Divya made remarks at Babu's send-off function, stating his involvement in corruption related to sanctioning an NOC for a petrol pump in Kannur district.

Attending his send-off function uninvited on October 14, Divya criticised Babu for delaying the approval of the petrol pump in Chengalai for several months and remarked that he granted approval only two days after being transferred, hinting that she knew the reasons behind the sudden approval.

The next day, Babu was found dead at his quarters in Kannur.

Amidst the raging row over his death, the Marxist party removed Divya as president of the Kannur district panchayat.