UP likely to get another acting DGP, prospect of full-time appointment remains dim

With incumbent DGP Prashant Kumar (IPS:1990:UP) set to retire on May 31, Uttar Pradesh appears poised to get yet another officiating Director General of Police (DGP), as the prospect of a full-time appointment remains uncertain.

According to highly placed sources, the state’s Home Department has neither forwarded a panel of eligible names to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) nor constituted the mandatory selection committee as prescribed under new state rules. This leaves the government with only two viable options—either seek an extension for the incumbent or appoint another officer in an acting capacity.

While there is speculation that the state government has informally sought an extension for Prashant Kumar, no official confirmation has been made. As things stand, the appointment of an acting DGP appears to be the most likely outcome.

Several senior IPS officers from the 1991 batch in the Uttar Pradesh cadre are eligible to be given additional charge if the government opts for an interim arrangement. Adding a layer of intrigue is the recent repatriation of Vitul Kumar (IPS:1993:UP), Special DG, CRPF, to the state cadre. While the timing of his return has stirred speculation in bureaucratic circles, there is no official word linking his repatriation to the DGP vacancy.

Interim leadership has become a pattern at the top of the UP Police since May 11, 2022, when the state government removed then DGP Mukul Goel (IPS:1987:UP) and appointed DG (Intelligence) Dr DS Chauhan (IPS:1988:UP) as acting DGP. A subsequent proposal to make Chauhan permanent was returned by the UPSC, which sought clarification on Goel’s removal—a query the state reportedly never addressed.

Since then, the DGP’s chair has been occupied by a string of officiating appointments: DS Chauhan, followed by RK Vishwakarma (IPS:1988:UP) for two months, then Vijay Kumar (IPS:1988:UP), and now Prashant Kumar, who has held the position since February 1, 2024.

Also Read: Vitul Kumar set to return to UP cadre amid DGP transition buzz

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