MUMBAI: The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Tuesday appointed Sanjay Verma as Director General of Police in Maharashtra. The election body took the decision based on the names of three IPS officers submitted by the chief secretary of the state. Mr. Verma replaced Rashmi Shukla, who was removed from the post after objections raised by the Maha Vikas Aghadi over her continuation during the Assembly election.
The state government sent a panel of three IPS officers including Mr. Verma, Ritesh Kumar and Sanjeev Kumar Singhal. Mr. Verma, who is an IPS officer from the 1990 batch, is currently serving as Director General of Legal and Technical.
The development comes a day after the poll body transferred Ms Shukla with immediate effect. Ms Shukla was transferred in the wake of the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA), especially Congress party’s allegation that Assembly election in Maharashtra cannot be conducted fairly if she continues to lead the police department in the state.
The state is scheduled to go to polls on November 20. Ms Shukla has been sent on “compulsory leave” till the elections get over in the state.
A senior official in the state government, requesting anonymity, said that the 1990 batch IPS officer will hold DGP’s post temporarily till the elections get over in the state. “Rashmi Shukla has been sent on compulsory leave for three weeks. Once the election is over, she will resume on the DGP’s post. Mr Verma is a makeshift arrangement to lead the police department till the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) remains in force in the state,” the senior official said.
It may be recalled that Ms Shukla was due to retire on June 30, 2024. However, she was given an extension until January 2026 by the Mahayuti government.
It is not the first time the poll panel has intervened during the Assembly election. In 2009, AN Roy, then-DGP, was removed during the election period. IPS officer Suprakash Chakravarty was appointed as DGP for the election period due to controversies surrounding Mr Roy and his close proximity with Sharad Pawar.
An IPS officer of the 1988 batch, Shukla is the first woman to become Maharashtra’s police chief. She faced allegations of illegally tapping phones of several Maha Vikas Aghadi leaders when she was serving as chief of the State Intelligence Department.
During the tenure of the Uddhav Thackeray-led MVA government, three cases were registered in connection with alleged phone tapping and Shukla was named in two of them. However, in September 2023, the Bombay High Court quashed both the FIRs registered against her. The third case, which was with the CBI for investigation, also did not reach any conclusion and a closure report was submitted before the court.
