What happened
Padma Jaiswal, a 2003-batch AGMUT cadre IAS officer, was dismissed from service in May 2026 for misappropriating approximately ₹28 lakh during her 2007–08 posting as Deputy Commissioner of West Kameng district in Arunachal Pradesh. The journey to accountability: complaints in 2008, suspension in 2009, suspension lifted in 2010, continued promotions through postings in Delhi, Goa, and Puducherry, a Central Administrative Tribunal ruling quashing proceedings on jurisdictional grounds, a Delhi High Court reversal in April 2026 reinstating the inquiry, and finally the President's order of removal — eighteen years after the initial misconduct. At the time of her dismissal, Jaiswal held the rank of Special Secretary in Delhi government's own Administrative Reforms Department. India's administrative reform process, apparently, works on a long enough timeline.