Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala
| Photo Credit: K. Ragesh
Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala on Wednesday (February 25, 2026) accused the Kerala Chief Minister’s Office (CMO) of orchestrating a massive collection of personal data from government employees, calling it a “blatant case of data theft” and a major political conspiracy.
At a press conference, he released a letter revealing that the Chief Minister’s Officer on Special Duty (OSD) had directed departments to hand over sensitive information, including data from SPARK (Service and Payroll Administrative Repository for Kerala), a web-based system for government employees.
According to Mr. Chennithala, “shocking details” have emerged from the correspondence, sent by Sreeram Sambasiva Rao, the Chief Minister’s OSD, on December 31, 2025. “The letter directed all government departments to compile Excel sheets through the K-SMART application and submit complete details of officials by February 12, 2026. It sought comprehensive personal information, including names, phone numbers, and job details of government employees,” he pointed out.
Mr. Chennithala also described the incident as “the largest data theft ever”, while also insisting that it “could not have occurred without the Chief Minister’s direct knowledge.”
He also alleged that the move was politically motivated, aimed at the upcoming Assembly elections and that it constituted “a blatant violation” of Supreme Court directives as well as the Digital Personal Data Protection (DPDP) Act, 2023. “Despite all these stipulations, the Chief Minister has secured personal details of pensioners, entrepreneurs, small-scale businessmen, and government employees — an extraordinary situation,” he added.
Mr. Chennithala also warned that the government could attempt to submit an affidavit to the High Court while deliberately leaving out the letter he had made public. “My request to the High Court is that it should initiate a suo motu case against the OSD, the Chief Minister, and the Chief Secretary,” he said.
The letter sent by the OSD outlined a plan to establish a ‘Centralised Notification Hub’ for government services and requested the personal details of government employees for this purpose. Under the guidance of the IT Mission, the Information and Public Relations department was directed to implement the programme, with all data to be submitted via email to the Assistant Mission Coordinator.
The letter further stated that the information would be used to send real-time notifications through SMS, email, WhatsApp and voice messages, as well as unified messages under the name ‘Government of Kerala.’
Published – February 25, 2026 11:46 am IST
