The Jammu and Kashmir government has appointed senior bureaucrat Mandeep Kaur to investigate the allegations against IAS officer Kumar Rajeev Ranjan and directed her to submit the inquiry report within 15 days of the issuance of the order. Amit Vermani, JKAS, Additional Secretary in the General Administration Department, has been appointed as the presenting officer in the matter.

This came after chief minister Omar Abdullah strongly condemned Ranjan’s conduct during a controversial online meeting, stating that his behaviour was not in keeping with the standards expected of a senior civil servant.

The incident occurred during a virtual review meeting on ‘Mission YUVA’. Ranjan, a 2010-batch IAS officer currently serving as administrative secretary of the labour and employment department, reportedly used abusive language toward assistant director (employment and counselling centre, Ganderbal) Beenish Wani. According to a video of the interaction circulating on social media, Ranjan repeatedly interrupted Wani, referred to her using demeaning language, and threatened to recommend her dismissal when she attempted to explain her office’s targets.

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Writing on X, Abdullah confirmed he had raised the issue with the chief secretary. “I’ve seen the video of the online government meeting that is circulating on social media. Prima facie the conduct of the senior officer was not in keeping with the standards expected of a senior IAS officer & the subsequent threats issued to a junior JKAS officer only make matters worse. I’ve taken this up in the strongest possible terms with the Chief Secretary. Unfortunately as a UT control over IAS officers rests with Lok Bhavan but as CM I’ve instructed the CS to ensure the JKAS officer faces no retributive action,” he said.

National Conference chief spokesman Tanvir Sadiq said that had J&K retained full statehood, the officer would have been attached to the general administration department (GAD) pending a formal inquiry. “This is precisely why the fight for the restoration of full statehood is so important,” Sadiq added.

A senior official confirmed that lieutenant governor Manoj Sinha is aware of the incident and stated that action will follow.

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Meanwhile, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti urged the chief minister to demand strict action from the central government, referencing past allegations against the officer. MP Srinagar Aga Ruhullah Mehdi and BJP spokesman Altaf Thakur also publicly condemned the officer’s behaviour and called for accountability.

The Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Service (JKAS) fraternity announced a day-long pen-down strike in protest. While emphasising its commitment to performance monitoring and accountability, the association stated that no authority can justify abusive language or intimidation. The fraternity alleged that this was not an isolated incident and pointed to a recurring pattern of unparliamentary conduct by the officer.

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2020: Suspended by the J&K government following his arrest by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in connection with an illegal arms licensing case involving alleged forged documents.

2021: Reinstated to service.

2025: Subjected to CBI searches during an investigation into alleged disproportionate assets.

Prior to his current role as administrative secretary of labour and employment, Ranjan served as deputy commissioner of Kupwara (2015–16), during which period similar complaints regarding his conduct were reported.