IAS officer deemed resigned for being on unauthorised leave

New Delhi: A senior bureaucrat has been "deemed to have resigned" for being on unauthorised leave for more than five years.

President Pranab Mukherjee has directed that Anu Aggarwal, a 2001 batch IAS officer of Nagaland cadre, is deemed to have resigned from the service in terms of 7(2)(b) of the All India Services (Leave) Rules, 1955, an order issued by Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) said.

As per the rule, a member of the service shall be deemed to have resigned if he is absent from duty for a continuous period exceeding five years.

Aggarwal, who also holds a Bachelor's degree in medicine, has served both at the Centre and in Nagaland. According to her service record, she last worked in the Human Resource Development department in her cadre state and is at present "on leave".

The Centre is taking strict action against IAS officers on unauthorised leaves, a senior DoPT official said.