Bhubaneswar: Police on Wednesday issued notices to Rajesh Verma, former principal secretary to then chief minister Naveen Patnaik, and former IT secretary Manoj Mishra as part of the investigation into the alleged disappearance of key inquiry reports on the 2008 assassination of VHP leader Swami Laxmanananda Saraswati and the 2016 SUM Hospital fire.Confirming the development, police commissioner Suresh Dev Datta Singh said, “They have been asked to share any information and documents available with them regarding the missing files.”Mishra had also served as an officer on special duty (OSD) to Naveen.The notices, issued under Section 179 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023 — which empowers an investigating officer to summon and examine any person acquainted with the facts of a case — asked Verma and Mishra to appear before the investigating team at Capital police station on July 22 and cooperate with the probe.“You are requested to bring with you any documents, records, electronic devices or other materials relevant to the investigation that may be in your possession or control. Kindly note that this notice is issued for the purpose of investigation and you are expected to comply with it in accordance with law,” the notice issued by investigating officer Bipin Bihari Hota stated.Police have registered a case under Sections 305 (theft), 316(2) (criminal breach of trust), 238(c) (causing disappearance of evidence or giving false information to screen an offender), 241 (destruction of documents or electronic records to prevent their production as evidence) and 61(2)(b) (criminal conspiracy) of the BNS.“Our investigation is underway,” a senior police officer said.The issue surfaced after the Odisha govt alleged that the two sensitive inquiry reports went missing from the CMO during the transition of power in June 2024. An FIR was registered on June 10, following which police launched a criminal investigation into the possible theft, concealment or destruction of official records.According to the home department, the Justice A S Naidu Commission report on the 2008 killing of Saraswati was sent to the chief secretary’s office on Sept 16, 2016, and forwarded to the chief minister’s office (CMO) on Sept 19. Similarly, the RDC inquiry report on the SUM Hospital fire was dispatched to the chief secretary’s office on May 23, 2018, and sent to the CMO the following day.A 1987 batch IAS officer, Verma served as principal secretary to Naveen from 2017 to 2019 before moving on to central deputation. He later served as secretary to President Droupadi Murmu from 2022 until his superannuation on Aug 31, 2024. Post-retirement, he has been serving as chairperson of the Commission for Air Quality Management in NCR and adjoining areas.Mishra, an Indian Railway Traffic Service (IRTS) officer, served as Odisha’s IT secretary from 2019 to 2022 and continued in the post on a contractual basis until 2024 after opting for voluntary retirement in 2022. In 2023, he was given additional charge as OSD to Naveen, a role that investigators believe could be relevant to the missing-files case.Verma and Mishra could not be contacted for comment.
