Only a day after both the Union and Kerala governments issued separate orders appointing him to two different positions, a Kerala cadre IAS officer, Mr. Pranabjyoti Nath officially took charge as the state Chief Electoral Officer (CEO). Mr. Nath, a 2005 batch officer of the Kerala cadre, previously served as the Secretary of Sports and Youth Services in the Kerala government.
The Election Commission selected him from a panel of candidates proposed by the state, leading to his appointment as CEO on Friday. The position had been vacant since August 5th, when the former CEO, IAS Sanjay M. Kaul (2001 batch), left for a central deputation.
This development was uncanny as the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) of the Centre issued an order on Friday appointing Mr. Nath as the Chief Vigilance Officer (CVO) of the public sector undertaking NALCO. Sources noted that the DoPT order was uploaded shortly after the Kerala government’s announcement.
The Election Commission of India chose Officer Nath on Thursday from a panel submitted by the Kerala government to fill the CEO role. Following the EC’s selection, the state government acted quickly, issuing its order the next day. This move comes in the context of upcoming by-elections for 50 seats nationwide, including the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency and the Chelakkara Assembly seat, scheduled for November.
The DoPT’s order, part of a set appointing CVOs for five different PSUs, stated that the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet approved Nath’s appointment as CVO of NALCO in Bhubaneswar for a three-year term. The Kerala CEO’s office confirmed that Nath assumed charge on Saturday.
Regarding the dual appointments, the CEO’s office stated, “We will address this issue with the Union government. The officer had applied for Central deputation earlier and completed all necessary procedures. His name was later included in the panel for the Chief Electoral Officer. Currently, there is no confusion, as he has already taken up his role as CEO of Kerala. We will also seek his input on the next steps regarding the Centre.“
A source from the DoPT explained that the state government had cleared Mr. Nath’s cadre for Central deputation before submitting his name for the CEO panel. However, considering the urgency of upcoming by-elections and the usual six-week timeframe for officers to join new roles, the officer could take up the CVO position after the elections.
