IAS Vasanthakumar N transferred to Ladakh; More posted to Puducherry, instead
LEH: Six weeks after he was shifted out to Ladakh, the union government on Friday modified the transfer order of senior IAS officer Ashish Madhaorao More, and shifted him to Puducherry, even as IAS officer Dr Vasanthakumar N has now been posted to the union territory of Ladakh.
More, the former principal secretary (services) in the Delhi government, was transferred by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to Ladakh on July 31. However, on Friday, the MHA modified More’s transfer order.
“In partial modification of MHA’s Order No. 14046/80/2023-UTS.I dated 31.07.2023, Sh. Ashish Madhaorao More, IAS (AGMUT:2005) is hereby transferred from Delhi to Puducherry instead of Ladakh with immediate effect and until further orders,” said an official order issued by Rakesh Kumar Singh, Under Secretary to the Government of India.
Further, the MHA has transferred Dr. Vasanthakumar N, a 2004-batch IAS officer to Ladakh.
“Consequent upon repatriation from Deputation, Dr. Vasanthakumar N, IAS(AGMUT:2004) is hereby posted to Ladakh with immediate effect and until further orders,” said the order.
More was the first senior officer to be removed from his post, hours after the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government in Delhi was given control over matters related to services by the Supreme Court in its verdict on May 11. Prior to the verdict of the court, the Services department was under the control of Delhi’s Lieutenant Governor.
A controversy had erupted after the AAP government accused More, a 2005-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer of the Arunachal Pradesh Goa Mizoram and Union Territories (AGMUT) cadre, of not complying with an order of Delhi Services Minister Saurabh Bharadwaj.
He was issued a memo by Bharadwaj on May 13, threatening disciplinary action against him for allegedly not complying with a direction for his transfer and “going incommunicado”.
However, the order to transfer More was executed subsequently and he was replaced by another IAS officer, A K Singh.
