IAS officer in Naidu’s CMO ruffles feathers—‘slammed door on one TDP MP, had spat with another’

Misra, a 2009-batch IAS officer from Andhra Pradesh cadre, was serving as director in the Centre’s Department Of Financial Services before his posting in the CMO as additional secretary last year.

File photo of IAS officer Kartikeya Misra | X @mgsipa

Hyderabad: An ugly spat between Kartikeya Misra—an IAS officer serving as secretary in Chandrababu Naidu’s CMO—and TDP Lok Sabha MP Dr Byreddy Shabari has become a hot topic in the power corridors of Amaravati and New Delhi, where it took place last week.

The spat broke out at Naidu’s official residence at Janpath, when he was in the Capital to attend the swearing-in of then Vice President-elect C.P. Radhakrishnan.

Narrating the incident, TDP sources told ThePrint that Shabari was waiting by the door to greet Naidu and have a word with the chief minister, who was on his way out to attend the swearing-in, when Misra walked up to her and confronted her.

Taken aback, Shabari, who comes from a family with political roots in Rayalaseema, protested the IAS officer’s “offensive tone”, and asked him to be respectful while talking to an elected MP, that too a woman. Their argument only escalated once Naidu left the premises, in front of about 30 people as they, including some TDP MPs, looked on in dismay.

Misra said he was a senior IAS officer who had served in various positions and need not be told how to conduct himself. Shabari, too, stood her ground saying “she is a doctor who saved many lives” and is now serving as a public representative.

The heated exchange, it is learnt, left Shabari in tears. The first-time MP from Nandyal messaged TDP national general secretary Nara Lokesh, “complaining about Misra’s rude behavior”.

Lokesh, a minister in Naidu’s government and the chief minister’s son, responded promptly, assuring Shabari that he would look into the matter. Misra’s alleged misconduct with a Member of Parliament was subsequently referred to Muddada Ravichandra, principal secretary to the CM.

“Now, what can we expect from this? The two officers operate from the same office and might be close, sharing their lunches every day,” said a TDP functionary who did not wish to be named.

While it is not known if Muddada probed the incident and got back to Lokesh, it is learnt that TDP leaders indicated to Shabari to let go of the matter, and “in fact, asked her to deny that such a spat ever occurred”.

“However, since the news itself died down in the next two-three days, Shabari, who is still pained by Misra’s attitude towards her, escaped the humiliation of having to deny what happened with her,” a friend of the TDP MP told ThePrint on condition of anonymity.

ThePrint reached Shabari and Misra for comment but neither responded to calls and messages. This report will be updated if and when a response is received.

Several other TDP MPs, however, are unhappy with Misra, who is a 2009-batch IAS officer from the Andhra Pradesh cadre. He was allegedly belligerent with another MP, a well-known industrialist who switched over to TDP from the YSRCP, said one party insider.

Adding, “Just recently, the officer slammed the door on the poor MP, who was aghast and could only share his pain with close friends, other MPs. In the Shabari case, no one protested—AP’s home minister, who is a woman, or the state women’s commission. Shabari could not even lodge a formal complaint with any authority. What to expect when the victim herself was asked to remain silent?”

Misra also shares a good rapport with Naidu, it is learnt. After he took the reins in June last year, Naidu sought Misra’s premature repatriation to his home cadre. Before his posting in the CMO as additional secretary last year, Misra was in New Delhi, serving as director in the Centre’s Department Of Financial Services.

“Some incidents since his collector days have earned Misra a reputation of being arrogant and foul mouthed. He is also not accessible to many, including us officers,” said one IAS posted in Andhra Pradesh who did not wish to be named.

In 2021, when he was serving as West Godavari collector, Misra had purportedly used abusive language against tahsildars during a review meeting for the COVID-19 vaccination drive. Purported audio clips of the encounter were viral for several days. A top official in the Andhra Pradesh administration told ThePrint that there is no inquiry, as per his knowledge, on Misra’s alleged misbehavior with Shabari or any other public representative.

This is an updated version of the report

(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)