Odisha Police Summon Former IAS Officer V.K. Pandian in Missing CMO Inquiry Reports Case

Bhubaneswar: The Odisha Police have summoned former IAS officer V.K. Pandian for questioning as part of the investigation into the alleged disappearance of two inquiry commission reports from the Chief Minister’s Office (CMO).

A notice issued by the Capital Police directs Pandian to appear before the Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Zone-I, at 11 am on July 25 to assist with the ongoing probe.

Pandian, a 2000-batch IAS officer, had served as the private secretary to former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik before taking voluntary retirement from the civil services. He later joined the Biju Janata Dal (BJD) ahead of the 2024 Lok Sabha and Odisha Assembly elections but withdrew from active politics after the party’s defeat in the elections.

The investigation revolves around the alleged disappearance of reports submitted by two inquiry commissions—one related to the Swami Lakshmanananda Saraswati murder case and the other concerning the SUM Hospital fire tragedy. The reports were reportedly found missing from the records maintained by the CMO, leading to the registration of a police case.

As part of the investigation, the Capital Police had earlier issued notices to former IT Secretary Manoj Mishra and senior IAS officer Rajesh Verma. Mishra has already appeared before investigators and recorded his statement. However, Verma reportedly did not appear before the police despite being asked to do so on Wednesday.

Police officials are continuing their investigation to determine how the commission reports went missing and whether any lapses or wrongdoing were involved. Former officials associated with the Chief Minister’s Office are being questioned to establish the sequence of events and trace the missing documents.