Pramesh S Jain
IAS officer Gnanendra Kumar,whose reported disappearance had triggered a police search in Bengaluru,has been traced to his hometown,police sources said.
The officer who is serving as Director MSME,had reportedly proceeded on leave to attend to personal work and a family emergency and travelled urgently to his hometown.
He was upset over reports describing him as having mysteriously gone missing,sources said.
According to a senior police officer,Gnanendra Kumar had applied for leave before leaving Bengaluru.
However,owing to the holidays,the leave application was reportedly not communicated to the concerned officials in time.
The officer was also not reachable on his official phone during the period,leading to confusion within the department and prompting a search for his whereabouts.
“He had applied for leave and gone to attend to personal work.Due to the holidays,the staff overlooked it and the leave application was not communicated.This miscommunication created all the problem,”a senior police officer said.
Home Minister Priyank Kharge also clarified the issue, saying there had been reports that a Karnataka IAS officer had gone missing.
“The officer concerned has since communicated with the Government and clarified that, due to a family emergency,he had sought leave and had to travel urgently to his hometown,”Kharge said.
He added that the officer was not reachable on his official phone during the period,which appeared to have led to confusion and speculation about his whereabouts.
The officer has since been in touch with the Government and clarified the situation.
