KSEB lineman questions bridge construction delay, gets transferred after CPM MLA's plaint, HC stays 'political' move

Kozhikode: The Kerala High Court on Wednesday stayed the transfer of a KSEB lineman from the Pannikode Electrical Section in Kozhikode to Purangu in Malappuram, nearly 100 km away, observing that it was a “pure political transfer”.

Justice N Nagaresh issued the interim order in a case that throws light on a CPM MLA’s intolerance of criticism and the Public Works Department’s prolonged delay in constructing a small but vital bridge over a brook at Kakkad in the Thiruvambady Assembly constituency.

For the lineman, Lukmanul Hakkeem K K (47), the stay came just in time. As per the relieving order, he was to join the Purangu sub-station in Ponnani on Thursday.

The trouble for Hakkeem began in August last year when he and a few other residents of Kakkad gathered outside a corner shop and made a group call, on a loudspeaker, to a PWD executive engineer, questioning the delay in constructing the bridge connecting Karassery and Kodiyathur panchayats.

The bridge and its approach roads were being built by the Uralungal Labour Contract Co-operative Society (ULCCS). When the call was made, the project had been stalled for nearly one and a half years. Residents were particularly aggrieved as the contractor began work without arranging an alternative route for vehicles. Around 20 buses ply the road daily, but services had been suspended for over a year. Thousands of children from Karassery panchayat depend on schools in Kodiyathur panchayat. Hakkeem had told the PWD official about the daily struggle his children face in getting to school.

By the time the call was made, ULCCS had completed the bridge, but the approach roads were stalled, and work had come to a standstill.

The delay had already triggered several protests by Opposition parties, particularly after the approach road collapsed during construction.

The video of the group call, made in protest, was also widely shared by residents of the village. In it, Hakkeem asked the PWD executive engineer to visit the site to expedite the work. Another resident, an aided school teacher, asked whether they should meet PWD Minister P A Mohammed Riyas for a bridge “over a brook… not even a stream”.

The official replied that a design change required fresh approval and that, following intervention by the minister’s office, the file had reached the Finance Department. Though several residents voiced their frustration, the exchange remained civil, with the executive engineer agreeing to visit the site “the coming Monday”.

Residents said the official’s visit brought partial relief, with a mud approach road laid to allow buses to pass, though under unsafe conditions.

Though the PWD did not lodge any complaint over the phone call, Thiruvambady MLA Linto Joseph wrote to Electricity Minister K Krishnankutty on August 4, seeking disciplinary action against Hakkeem for allegedly violating service rules. The MLA claimed the lineman was “continuously engaging in anti-government campaigns and acting against KSEBL”.

Krishnankutty (81) belongs to the Janata Dal (Secular), while Joseph (33), a former SFI leader, represents the CPM.

Following the complaint, the KSEBL Assistant Executive Engineer of the Kunnamangalam sub-division conducted an inquiry, recording Hakkeem’s statement and seeking opinions from other officials. The inquiry concluded that there was “no evidence to suggest that he engaged in activities against the interests of KSEBL or in anti-government activities” and recommended that the complaint be closed.

The report also noted that Hakkeem was a member of the trade union affiliated to Krishnankutty’s Janata Dal (S).

Despite this, on September 26, 2025, the Kozhikode Executive Engineer issued a charge memo accusing Hakkeem of organising members of the public “to obstruct the discharge of official duties by the Executive Engineer of the PWD”.

Another charge alleged that he threatened the PWD official, made defamatory statements about the department, and provoked the public.

In his reply, Hakkeem denied all charges, stating that apart from the phone call, no protest had taken place.

On January 5, the KSEB Chief Engineer (HR) transferred him to Purangu “in public interest”. Two days later, the Kozhikode Executive Engineer sent him the relieving order via WhatsApp.

Hakkeem moved the High Court on January 8, challenging what he described as a politically motivated complaint from the MLA and a punitive transfer.

When contacted, MLA Linto Joseph said Hakkeem’s actions amounted to a violation of service rules. “KSEB took two weeks to remove an electric post obstructing the bridge work. Imagine a PWD engineer sitting on a culvert and blaming KSEB for the delay,” he said.

On the delay itself, Joseph said it was “not a delay but a design change”. The protection wall of the approach road had collapsed during the rainy season, necessitating a shift from a dry rubble (DR) wall to a gabion structure.

A dry rubble wall is built by stacking stones without mortar, relying on gravity, while a gabion consists of stones packed in wire-mesh cages. Gabions are flexible and better suited to areas prone to water flow.

“It took four months to get the revised design approved,” the MLA said, adding that Hakkeem raked up the issue during this period.

Joseph alleged that Hakkeem went beyond criticism and led a sustained campaign against the PWD and the government through voice notes and social media posts, including personal attacks on the MLA. “I collected all available material on social media and submitted a complaint to the minister,” he said.

The MLA alleged that after the inquiry exonerated him, Hakkeem went public with claims that no action could be taken against him. "I submitted that as evidence as well.”

Hakkeem’s counsel, Advocate Ameen Hassan K, said the only allegation ever formally raised against his client was the phone conversation, which had already been inquired into. “None of the other allegations were put to my client. Service guidelines prescribe a minimum tenure of five years for linemen," he said. "The court accepted our argument and called it a pure political transfer," said Adv Hassan.

Despite all the efforts going after a lineman for nearly six months, the approach road to the bridge at Kakkad remains incomplete.