Ranchi, Oct 19: Jharkhand’s Acting Director General of Police (DGP) Anurag Gupta has been removed from his position, on the directions of the Election Commission and Ajay Kumar Singh has been appointed as the new police chief of the poll-bound state.
Singh, a 1989-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the Jharkhand cadre, officially assumed office following a state government notification issued on Saturday evening. Singh was previously appointed as Jharkhand’s DGP on February 24, 2023, but was replaced on July 26, 2024, and transferred to serve as Chairman-cum-Managing Director of Jharkhand Police Housing Corporation Ltd.
He has held several key positions in the state, including Director General of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, CID, Special Branch, and Railway Police. Singh also served as Superintendent of Police in the districts of Hazaribagh and Dhanbad.
The Election Commission’s order to remove Gupta was based on two factors. First, Gupta had only been serving as Acting DGP since July 24. Second, complaints were reportedly lodged against him with the Election Commission. There were also allegations that he indulged in horse trading during Rajya Sabha elections, from which he was later cleared.
Additionally, a contempt petition had been filed in the Supreme Court a few months ago, challenging Gupta’s appointment as Acting DGP. The petition, filed by Jamshedpur resident Naresh Makani, claimed that Gupta’s appointment violated the Supreme Court’s 2018 ruling, which prohibited the appointment of acting DGPs in any state.
The top court had issued a notice to Gupta in response to the petition. The Election Commission’s directive required the Jharkhand government to replace Gupta with a senior officer of DGP rank and submit a compliance report by 7 p.m. on Saturday.
The elections in Jharkhand will be held in two phases, on November 13 and November 20, with the vote counting scheduled for November 23. In the first phase, elections will be held in 43 of the total 81 constituencies while in the second phase, the remaining 38 seats will go to polls.
IANS