Bhubaneswar: Senior Odisha cadre IAS officer Sujata Karthikeyan, wife of former bureaucrat V.K. Pandian, has reportedly applied for voluntary retirement from service (VRS).
According to sources, she has submitted her VRS application to the central government, and her request is believed to have been approved. However, there has been no official confirmation yet.
About Sujata Karthikeyan
A 2000-batch IAS officer, Sujata Karthikeyan, was serving as the Special Secretary in the Odisha Finance Department. She had recently resumed duty after a six-month child care leave (CCL) that began on May 31, 2024—just a day before the final phase of polling in Odisha’s 2024 elections.
Notably, in November 2024, the Odisha government declined her request for a six-month extension of CCL, directing her to return to work immediately.
Her husband, V.K. Pandian, a former IAS officer, took VRS in 2023 and later joined the Biju Janata Dal (BJD). He is regarded as a close confidant of BJD president and former Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Neither Sujata Karthikeyan nor the central government has issued an official statement regarding her VRS application.
The development has fuelled political speculation, especially following reports that Naveen Patnaik and V K Pandian were seen at Coimbatore Airport in Tamil Nadu on Friday. Their visit while the Odisha Assembly is in session has raised questions, particularly since Naveen serves as the Leader of the Opposition (LoP). Senior BJD leaders, including MLAs, were unable to provide information about their party chief’s presence in Tamil Nadu during the ongoing Assembly session.
