Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner S. Sasikanth Senthil, a 2009 batch Karnataka cadre Indian Administrative (IAS) officer, resigned on Friday, stating that it would be “unethical” on his part to continue in service “when the fundamental building blocks of our diverse democracy are being compromised in an unprecedented manner.”
He further said in a statement, “I also feel strongly that the coming days will present extremely difficult challenges to the basic fabric of our nation and that I would be better off outside the IAS to continue my work at making life better for all. It simply cannot be business as usual any more.” He said the decision was purely a personal one and was in no way connected to anyone or any event during his current stint.
Meanwhile, Sindhu B. Rupesh has been appointed Deputy Commissioner of Dakshina Kannada in place of Mr. Senthil.
Serving in Dakshina Kannada since October 2017, Mr. Senthil was regarded a proactive officer responding immediately to issues concerning people, be it natural calamities or illegal sand extraction.
He was credited with putting a leash on the illegal sand mafia in the district that had almost destroyed the fragile coastal regulation zone ecosystem. Mr. Senthil brought down the number of sand extraction permits in rivers of the coastal regulation zone from over 400 to about 90 in the last two years. He was known as an upright officer when he served as Raichur Deputy Commissioner between 2014 and 2016 too.
The 1979-born Sasikanth Senthil hails from Chennai and is the son of retired district judge P. Shanmugam and retired Central government officer Ambica. A BE from the Regional Engineering College of Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirapalli, he began his stint in civil service as Assistant Commissioner of Ballari in 2009.
Mangaluru South MLA D. Vedavyasa Kamath, in a statement, said people’s representatives of the district, including Minister Kota Srinivas Poojari and Nalin Kumar Kateel, MP, urged Mr. Senthil to withdraw his resignation. The Chief Minister’s Office too contacted him, asking him to reconsider the decision, he added.
