Bhubaneswar: Lok Bhavan on Friday constituted a four-member high-level committee to investigate allegations of misconduct by its staff against two IRS officers during a courtesy visit to the governor’s office on Thursday.“The committee will hear both sides and submit its findings to the governor,” a Lok Bhavan official told TOI.On Thursday, D Sudhakara Rao, principal chief commissioner of Income Tax in Odisha, had lodged a written complaint with the governor’s secretariat alleging that his officers — Manish Kumar and Satya Prakash Mishra — were forcibly removed from the governor’s house in a police van and taken to Capital police station.Preliminary inquiry by the Lok Bhavan office revealed that Mishra and Kumar had neither secured prior appointments nor obtained visitor passes to enter the high-security zone.“Five official passes were issued — for Rao, his wife, and three other IRS officers. However, Mishra insisted on accompanying his senior Manish Kumar to Lok Bhavan. Ignoring advice, he entered through Gate No. 3 without authorization and refused to vacate the office premises. Security staff, adhering to protocol, called a police van to escort them to the station,” the Lok Bhavan official said. “The governor’s office is a restricted zone. As a Z+ protectee, strict security clearance is mandatory,” the official added. However, no formal trespass complaint has been filed.It was learnt that Mishra on Oct 25 last year had allegedly attempted unauthorized entry to Lok Bhavan. Capital police station had made a station diary entry (No. 008, dated Oct 31, 2025) against Mishra. According to the diary entry, seen by TOI, Mishra had asked security staff at Gate No. 7 to allow entry for some individuals in two vehicles.While Mishra and Kumar were unavailable for comment, Rao’s written complaint stated, “Despite coordinating the visit in advance and informing the OSD to the Hon’ble Governor and the ADC (Navy) of their presence in the waiting area, the officers were subjected to unprovoked and atrocious treatment.”Several IRS officers have demanded action against Lok Bhavan staff. “Even if they lacked passes, treating them like terrorists and hauling them to a police station was excessive. This matter should never have been escalated to such a level,” one officer said.Attempts to reach Rao over phone and messages for further comment were unsuccessful.
