Veteran civil servant Syed Munir Hoda passes away at 76

Veteran civil servant Syed Munir Hoda died in the early hours of Wednesday (October 28, 2026) in a private hospital in Chennai. He was 76. He is survived by his wife, Parveen Hoda, son Sameer Hoda, and daughter Tabassum Munir.

“He battled ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) for four years. I understand that those who are afflicted with the ailment survive hardly for a year or two,” said Ms. Tabassum Munir.

A postgraduate in business administration from Banaras Hindu University (BHU), Mr. Hoda, who was born in Jamshedpur, now in Jharkhand, belonged to the Indian Administrative Service of the 1976 batch. “His roots are in Bihar Sharif in Nalanda district of Bihar,” said C.P. Singh, his long-time friend and a fellow IAS officer of the 1981 batch. Mr. Hoda was a humane person who had helped a number of persons in distress, Mr. Singh recalls.

After serving as Assistant Collector (Training) in Cuddalore, Mr. Hoda became the Collector of Kanniyakumari district in September 1985 and held the post till February 1988. He had promoted the idea of paying attention to ancillary units, besides capitalising on the minerals available and developing food processing industries in the district, instead of the usual practice of starting different types of units in a common complex.

In a career spanning over 35 years, he held various positions, including Member-Secretary of the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority and Transport, Health and Home Secretary. He also served as Secretary to the Chief Minister when M. Karunanidhi returned to power in 2006. Mr. Hoda later became Chairman of Chennai Metro Rail Limited and head of the Tamil Nadu Power Finance and Infrastructure Development Corporation before becoming the State Election Commissioner (SEC), a post that he held for about 10 months.

However, his tenure as the Home Secretary (2002-2004) turned out to be a chequered episode in his career. In July 2004, he was suspended by the State government for “dereliction of duty and criminal breach of confidence and trust” in the stamp paper row and for issuing an order to provide medical treatment in Chennai for an accused in the 1998 Coimbatore serial bomb blast case and the People’s Democratic Party (PDP)’s founder, Abdul Nasir Maudany, without consulting the Chief Minister or Chief Secretary.

Paying tribute to Mr. Hoda, Manithaneya Makkal Katchi (MMK) leader M.H. Jawahirullah said that the civil servant, who was reinstated into service in January 2006, played a key role in implementing the “quota within quota” scheme for Backward Classes Muslims during the DMK regime (2006-11).

After retirement, he remained in touch with institutions concerning education and administration. He served on the managing committee of the Southern India Education Trust (SIET), Mr. Jawahirullah added.

Mr. Hoda’s funeral will take place at the Royapettah Kabirstan on Thursday (October 29) afternoon.