Naveen Patnaik's Secretary Takes Voluntary Retirement, May Join Politics

Senior Congress MLA SS Saluja welcomed Mr Pandian's decision to take voluntary retirement.

IAS officer VK Pandian, the private secretary of Odisha CM Naveen Patnaik, took voluntary retirement from government service, officials said on Monday.

Mr Pandian whose rose to prominence as the close aide of the chief minister has often landed him in controversies, with opposition parties alleging that he was misusing his position for political gains.

He was a 2000-batch IAS officer of the Odisha cadre.