New ACB chief seeks L-G’s intervention

The newly-appointed chief of the Delhi Government’s Anti-Corruption Branch (ACB), Mukhesh Kumar Meena, on Friday, wrote to the L-G challenging the posting of policemen from Bihar to the State Government’s anti-graft body.

This, even as sources in the Delhi Police said, plans were afoot to affect more transfers from the Capital’s own law enforcement agency to the ACB over the coming days.

In his letter, Mr. Meena cited a significant provision in the Indian Police Act — which argues in favour of ‘one police force for the whole of Delhi’ — to argue against the recent induction of police officials from Bihar and other States to his unit. “Police officers from Bihar are not required in the ACB and I have merely raised legal issues surrounding their recent posting which are in violation of Section (3) of the Indian Police Act (1988 ),” Mr. Meena said. The section states that there shall be one police force for the whole of Delhi and all officers and subordinate ranks of the force shall be liable for posting to any branch of the force including the Delhi armed police.

This is the 1989-batch Indian Police Service officer’s second run-in with the Delhi Government after L-G Najeeb Jung cleared his appointment as joint commissioner of the ACB ‘without keeping the Chief Minister’s office or the Government in the loop’.

Following the cancellation of his posting order to the ACB by the State Government, Mr. Meena had written to Home Minister Satyendra Jain to ‘take the Government’s objections to his appointment up with the L-G House’ a day later.

Meanwhile, according to sources, the Delhi Police plan to pump more of its own personnel into the ACB to strengthen the MHA’s indirect hold over the anti-graft unit despite already having fulfilled the necessary manpower quota.

“There is no dearth of policemen in the force and many Inspector-level personnel have expressed their willingness to join the ACB. We are merely fulfilling our responsibility towards the unit as per legal requirements,” said a police officer.

These transfers are scheduled close to 60 days after the first and only time the ACB requested more manpower from the Delhi Police Commissioner’s office on April 24.

There is no dearth of policemen in the force and many Inspector-level personnel have expressed willingness to join the ACB, says a police officer