In compliance with the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) directive, the West Bengal government swiftly appointed Vivek Sahay (IAS:1988:WB) as the new Director General of Police (DGP) on Monday. This decision came shortly after the ECI removed Rajeev Kumar (IPS:1989:WB) from the position of DGP.
Vivek Sahay brings extensive experience to the role, having previously served as the Director General (DG) of Provisioning and the Director General of Home Guards. Notably, Sahay had been responsible for overseeing the security of Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. However, his tenure was interrupted when the Election Commission suspended him in March 2021 following an attack on the CM, resulting in severe leg injuries. Nevertheless, Sahay was later reinstated to the position of Director of Security.
Meanwhile, Rajeev Kumar, who assumed the role of state DGP last December, has been reassigned to the Information and Technology department, a role deemed unrelated to election matters. This reshuffle was deemed necessary due to Kumar’s previous removal from active election management duties during both the 2016 assembly election and the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, as highlighted by poll panel sources.
