Odisha Police Summons Ex-CM Aide Pandian Over Missing CMO Files
The Odisha Police have summoned V. Karthikeya Pandian, a former aide to ex-Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, to appear before a probe team investigating the disappearance of two files from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) during the previous Biju Janata Dal (BJD) government.
The Capital police station in Bhubaneswar directed Mr. Pandian, a former IAS officer, to appear before the Assistant Commissioner of Police (Zone-1) on July 25 for questioning. He has been asked to bring any documents, electronic devices, or other materials relevant to the investigation.
In related developments, senior IAS officer Rajesh Verma, who served as Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, and former IT Secretary Manoj Mishra have also been called to provide information. While Mr. Mishra appeared before the investigation team on Tuesday, Mr. Verma did not present himself on Wednesday as summoned.
Mr. Pandian resigned from the Indian Administrative Service in 2023 and is known as the longest-serving private secretary to any Chief Minister in Odisha. After the 2024 Assembly elections, in which the BJD suffered a significant defeat to the Bharatiya Janata Party, he withdrew from politics and is rarely seen in public. His wife, Sujata Rout Karthikeyan, also a former IAS officer, recently joined the BJD.
On Wednesday, Commissioner of Police (Bhubaneswar-Cuttack) Suresh Dev Datta Singh briefed Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on the progress of the investigation into the missing files, according to an official.
The case concerns the disappearance of two judicial commission inquiry reports: the A.S. Naidu Commission report on the killing of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and others at the Jaleshpeta Ashram in Kandhamal district in 2008, and a Revenue Divisional Commission (RDC)-level inquiry report on a fire incident at SUM Hospital and Medical College in Bhubaneswar.
According to the state Home Department, the Naidu Commission report was sent to the CMO on October 19, 2016, while the RDC inquiry report was forwarded on May 24, 2018.
The killing of Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and four others in 2008 triggered large-scale communal riots between Hindus and Christians in Kandhamal district. It remains one of the worst instances of anti-Christian violence recorded in Odisha.
