The Centre has asked Odisha government to take appropriate action against V.K. Pandian, private secretary to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on allegation of violation of All India Services Conduct (AISC) Rules, 1948.
The Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) directed the State Chief Secretary P.K. Jena to take ‘action as appropriate’ by forwarding the complaint submitted by BJP member of Parliament Aparajita Sarangi and party State president Manmohan Samal.
Presenting photographs and videos in support of their allegations, both Ms. Sarangi and Mr. Samal stated in their complaint that Mr. Pandian is moving around the State using State plane/helicopter and attending public reception. He is announcing new projects on the instructions of the CM. “This is done in clear violation of rule 5(I) and rule 12 (I) of AISC Rules, 1948,” they said.
“There is no such instruction of CM available. Even if there was instruction to go to the field to supervise development works, the activities of the officer under the garb of supervision of development works, are a clear violation of the conduct rules,” they said.
The BJP leaders pointed out that the decoration of meeting venues resembled Biju Janata Dal party meeting ambience and organisers of the meetings were prominent BJD faces. “IAS officers are bound by AISC Rules and such spectacle by a serving officer is unheard of in any other part of India,” the complaint says.
Bijay Kumar Patnaik, former Chief Secretary and now Campaign Committee Chairman of Odisha Congress, on Tuesday shot off a complaint to DoPT on similar line stating, “no serving officer is permitted under the AISC Rules to represent a political functionary in a public meeting.”
“Since the alleged officer is presently working as the private secretary to Odisha CM, it is futile to expect CM to take action against the officer for violation of rules,” said the Congress leader.
