It now appears that suspended bureaucrat M Sivasankar's connections with the gold smuggling accused runs far deeper than was assumed till now.
The suspension order served by Chief Secretary Viswas Mehta on Friday, right at the outset, states that it was on Sivasankar's reference that Swapna Suresh was appointed on a contract basis as 'operations manager/junior consultant' at Space Park under Kerala State Information Technology Infrastructure Limited (KSITIL).
Till now, official sources had maintained that the appointment was made by an agency (Vision Technologies) appointed by PricewaerhouseCoopers, the consultant for the Space Park project. PwC had even publicised Swapna's 'verification report', which was said to be done by its sub-agency and which said that Swapna had no case pending against her in any courts in the country.
This was patently wrong as the Crime Branch had taken a case against her for forgery in a sexual harassment case and the issue was under the consideration of the High Court.
The chief secretary's order states that Sivasankar's conduct in this regard (appointment of Swapna Suresh) constituted a violation of All India Service Conduct Rules.
Additionally, the order finds fault with Sivasankar for establishing close links with a foreign consulate official. In short, he will be investigated for for having links with Swapna Suresh even before she was appointed at Space Park. Before joining Space Park, Swapna was the secretary to the UAE Consul General.
The departmental action against Sivasankar has now been initiated on these two grounds: one, for playing a decisive role in Swapna's appointment and also for having links with a foreign consulate official.
The chief secretary's panel has found Sivasankar guilty of violating All India Service Conduct Rules, 1968, mainly on four grounds. One, failure to maintain integrity in public service. Two, failure to declare any private interests relating to the officer's public duties. Three, misuse of position as civil servant to derive financial or material benefits for himself, family or friends. Four, failure to make choices, decisions and recommendations on merit alone.
With the new revelation, Sivasankar's role in many other government deals have become suspect.