In a bizarre administrative mix-up, both the Kerala government and the central government issued orders on the same day appointing Kerala cadre IAS officer Pranabjyoti Nath (IAS:2005:KL) to two different posts. While the Kerala government appointed him as Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of the state, the central government assigned him the role of Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) at NALCO in Bhubaneswar. However, Nath has taken charge as CEO of Kerala.
This curious situation unfolded as follows: With upcoming by-elections for the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency and the Palakkad and Chelakkara Assembly constituencies in November, the CEO post had been vacant since August 5 after Sanjay M Kaul (IAS:2005:KL) left on central deputation. The Kerala government initially sent a panel of three IAS officers to the Election Commission of India (ECI), but the commission rejected this list, requesting a new one. The revised list included Nath’s name, and on Thursday, the ECI selected him for the CEO role, prompting the Kerala government to issue his appointment order on Friday (25.10.2024).
On the same day, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) issued an order stating that the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet had approved Nath’s appointment as CVO of NALCO for a three-year period. Notably, Nath had previously applied for deputation to his home state and completed all required formalities.
Amid this confusion, Nath assumed charge as Kerala CEO on Saturday. Reports indicate that the CEO office plans to raise the matter with the Union government. Given the administrative urgency of the by-elections and the standard six-week joining period for such appointments, Nath may join NALCO as CVO after the elections are completed.
