It is now official. UP’s acting DGP Prashant Kumar finally crashes out of the race of being appointed as permanent DGP of the state. The possibility of his selection came to an end on November 30 as he needed to have at least six months of service left for being eligible for appointment as permanent DGP. He is retiring on May 31.
Now the wait for a permanent DGP begins afresh in the state which has seen four acting DGPs since May 2022.
Sources say procedure for selecting the permanent DGP will start soon. As per a senior government official, the decision is likely to be finalised by the second week of December.
Ironically, when the new rules were formulated on November 5, there was a general perception that incumbent acting DGP Prashant
Kumar is all set to be appointed as a regular DGP, considering his closeness to the Yogi government.
As per the new rules, a selection committee headed by a retired judge of the High Court which was tasked with finalizing the appointment is yet to be constituted. Further, the new rules also stated that the permanent DGP should have at least two-year term. If an IPS officer with six-months of service left like Prashant Kumar would have been appointed as regular DGP, the he would have required a service extension of at least 1.5 years. In that case, the state government would again have to take clearance from the Union home ministry.
So, the government is now said to be mulling over posting an IPS officer of director general rank who has at least two years of service
left as the permanent DGP. This is being done to rule out the possibility of having to seek clearance from the Union home ministry, a senior government official confided.
