
In 1990, it was reported that when Pathak serving as the deputy commissioner of Giridh, he beat up a journalist for filing a wrong report.
Fine imposed by High Court
In 2018, the Patna High Court imposed a fine of Rs. 1.75 lakh on KK Pathak for being accused of arbitrariness by branch managers of SBI bank. The accusation was in relation to a case registered by Pathak against seven branch managers of SBI for late deposit of stamp duty in 2016.
Pathak's attack on a company owner
In 2019, while he was serving as the Principal Secretary of the Minor Irrigation Department, Kumud Raj Singh, director of Maa Shakuntala Infrastructure Pvt Ltd, accused him of threatening to kill him. He also alleged him of beating him with a stick.
Pathak accused of violent behaviour towards staff
On 2 February 2023, a video of Pathak went viral on social media in which he was seen abusing the deputy collector and 'BASA' (Bihar Administrative Service Association) over people of the city not following traffic rules. This behaviour of Pathak was criticized by the Bihar Administrative Service Association that demanded his removal from the post. In the video, he said,
In Chennai, people follow rules. Have you ever seen anyone here following the traffic rules? They will keep honking even if there is a red light. Have you not seen this? People here are like that only. Laal light bhi hai, pe pe bhi karega...the situation of the deputy collector is this."
The deputy collector was trying to apologize to him, but Pathak did not stop and kept shouting on him. The Prohibition, excise and registration minister in Bihar government, Sunil Kumar said that strict action will be taken against him. The Bihar Administrative Service Association (BASA) has filed an FIR against him. According to various media reports, the aggression seen in the video is in relation to the death of a deputy collector, Vivek Kumar. On 14 November 2022, Vivek Kumar died after he was sent from Dehradun to Gaya for field training. BASA complained about his death to the Chief Secretary when 10 other trainies fell ill in Gaya on 5 December and all had to be admitted to the hospital. On 10 December 2022, Pathak wrote a letter to Chief Secretary and mentioned that the state officers were “indisciplined”, “self delusional” and have “a weird sense of superiority complex and self entitlement”. In protest of Pathak's behaviour, the BASA members decided to wear black wristbands and pray for his mental purification.
Tussle with Bihar Education Minister
On 4 July 2023, Bihar Education Minister Chandrashekhar wrote a letter to KK Pathak, expressing his displeasure over the functioning of the department. Reportedly, from dropping the domicile policy for teachers' job recruitment to directing a ban on wearing jeans and T-shirts, KK Pathak had made a slew of changes ever since he took charge as Additional Chief Secretary of the education department, and it infuriated Chandrashekhar following which Chandrashekhar's private secretary wrote a confidential letter to KK Pathak; however, it backfired as KK Pathak banned the secretary's entry to the education department. According to KK Pathak, the minister's secretary leaked the "yellow" letter to the media, which further fueled the controversy. On 6 July 2023, Chandrashekhar met Lalu Prasad Yadav and apprised him of the entire controversy following which Lalu Yadav advised him to meet Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Lalu Prasad, while talking about this, said,
"I spoke to Chandrashekhar first and then told Nitish Kumar over the phone to meet him and solve the crisis."
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