Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) has sacked the official who had put up a poster of terrorist Osama Bin Laden and hailed him as the ‘best engineer in the world’.
The state-run power distribution company terminated the services of Ravindra Prakash Gautam, Sub-divisional officer (SDO) Farukkhabad.
On Monday, UPPCL chairman M Devraj issued Gautam’s termination order after an inquiry committee found him guilty of ‘engaging in an anti-national act that tarnished the image of the department.
In June last year, it was reported that Ravindra Prakash Gautam, former SDO (Nawabganj) posted in Kayamanganj in UP’s Farrukhabad had put up the poster of Al-Qaeda terrorist Osama bin Laden in his office and had claimed that Laden was the best engineer in the world. He had framed his opinion after he read a book on Laden which mentioned that ‘Laden had a degree in civil engineering and was associated with many crucial projects in Saudi Arabia in the initial phase of his life’.
After the video of the poster of Laden hanging in his office with the caption “Respected Osama Bin Laden, the best engineer in the world” went viral over social media platforms the SDO was suspended by Dakshinanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam and an investigation was initiated.
According to the order issued by the UPPCL chairman, “Him (Ravindra Prakash Gautam) considering Osama bin Laden as the best engineer and pasting his photo in the office are signs of extreme indiscipline. Despite being a public servant, he committed an anti-national act and also against the corporation that damaged the department’s reputation.”
A number of other accusations were made against him by the DVVNL investigative committee, including causing loss of revenue, inappropriate behaviour towards senior officers, and negligence in departmental work.
Gautam, in his defence, gave several bizarre arguments, one such was that if some people in this country can idolize Nathuram Godse who killed Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi then why can he not idolize Osama Bin Laden.
