The Kerala Union of Working Journalists (KUWJ) has demanded exemplary action against Prashant Nair, managing director of Kerala Shipping and Inland Navigation Corporation (KSINC), for responding with a sticker with sexual overtones when a woman journalist of a Malayalam daily sought to speak with him for a news story.
The KUWJ protested the officer’s ‘unseemly’ behaviour towards the journalist who was trying to get his response to a controversy involving the company headed by him and also took exception to the social media post made by the officer’s wife “which denigrated the entire media fraternity”. The union petitioned Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Chief Secretary Vishwas Mehta seeking action against the officer.
The KUWJ district committee also sought action against the official.
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The Moolampilly Coordination Committee, while condemning the officer’s behaviour, sought to know from the government if the way the officer behaved was in line with its policy.
‘Issue over emoji’
In an evasive response, Prasanth Nair maintained that he consistently refused to speak to the media about the controversy involving KSINC.
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“I continue to hold that position despite any provocation, including the latest issue over an ‘emoji’ on WhatsApp. I have been getting threatening calls ever since my phone number was published in the media, and am planning to take this up with the police,” he said.