Yogi not to have any say in selecting new UP Police chief

Yogi not to have any say in selecting new UP Police chief

Lucknow, Jan 23 (IANS) Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath will not be directly involved in the selection of the state''s new Director General of Police (DGP), as a five member panel with Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) member as its chairman has been assigned the job.

The panel will shortlist three candidates for the post of DGP and subsequently Adityanath would then select the police chief from the list.

A senior government source related to the development said here on Thursday that the move to select the new DGP through a five-member panel has been constituted on the direction of the Supreme Court.

He said the five-member panel comprises the UPSC member as its chairman, the state Chief Secretary, the outgoing DGP, an officer of Secretary level of the Central government and one Director General from any one of the paramilitary forces.

A former top cop on condition of anonymity said that the Chief Minister not having a say in the appointment of the DGP is a "good move" as it will reduce the "political interference" in the senior appoitments.

"During the Mayawati and Samajwadi Party rule in the state, we have witnessed how the senior appointments were made," he said.

The government source said that the UPSC has asked for the updated list of the eligible senior IPS officers from the state.

The panel has asked for a list of the IPS officers who have completed 30 years of service and have at least six months of service or more left.

The source further said that the state government has already sent a list of senior IPS officers with the UPSC.

Meanwhile, on Thursday, senior IPS officer Jawahar Lal Tripathi moved the Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court flagging the fact that he was "not included" in the list of IPS officers sent to the Commission.

Tripathi, who is currently posted as Director General, Civil Defence, has around eight months of service remaining.

The 1986-batch IPS officer has sought the court to direct the state government to include his name in the list sent to the UPSC and consider his candidature for the top post. His petition is likely to come up for hearing on Friday.

Uttar Pradesh presently has 17 DG-rank officers in the state cadre. Among the 17 senior IPS officers, Bhawesh Kumar Singh and Mahendra Modi are set to retire in January, while three others -- Duli Lukaratnam, Virendra Kumar and S. Javeed Ahmad - are set to retire in March.

Three officers -- Arun Kumar, Nasir Kamal and Dr A.P. Maheshwari - are on central deputation.

Arun Kumar is currently posted as DG, Railway Protection Force (RPF), Nasir Kamal as DG, Border Security Force (BSF) and Maheshwari, the DG Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF).

Even senior IPS officer Hitesh Chandra Awasthy, who is currently posted as Director General, Vigilance, is also a contender for the top post.

--IANS

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Disclaimer :- This story has not been edited by Outlook staff and is auto-generated from news agency feeds. Source: IANS