The Maharashtra DGP has initiated disciplinary action against 75 inspectors who declined ACP promotions, directing department heads state wide to submit action-taken reports.
The immediate cause of the action was the directives from the Maharashtra home department between 2022 and 2024 clearing two promotion lists that promoted inspectors to the rank of ACPs or DSPs. When most of the inspectors declined their promotions, the top brass stepped in with the demand for action taken reports.
Of the 75 officers who declined promotions, Mumbai leads with 24, followed by Thane and Pune with nine each, the Anti Corruption Bureau and Pimpri-Chinchwad with four each, and others from various districts. Many believed refusals would go unchecked, but the DGP’s demand for status reports has sparked panic among the concerned officers.
The DGP office revealed that in the last two years over 500 senior inspectors were promoted to ACP ranks while another 215 were promoted in 2025. Yet, a significant proportion of the elevated official declined to accept the higher rung. While some may have a valid reason for refusing the promotion, most others have a slew of one or more reasons.
Reasons include ongoing departmental inquiries, negative remarks in service records, and unresolved notices. Some officers have even formally stated they do not wish to accept the ACP promotion.
An important reason not explicitly stated but confirmed by several officials on conditions of anonymity is that a Senior Inspector or police station-in-charge is a position that comes with invisible perks like power and influence, and many officers in this position would rather retain it than let it slip away. Not surprisingly, the DGP’s directive sends a strong message across that promotions are not a choice, and its
refusal comes with consequences. The fate of officers declining promotions would be known in the days and weeks ahead.
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