Punjab Gets New Police Chief, 3rd In 100 Days, Before Poll Code Kicks In

Chandigarh:

The Punjab authorities on Saturday appointed VK Bhawra as the brand new Director-Normal of Police.

Mr Bhawra was picked from an inventory of three candidates supplied by the Union Public Service Fee; others on the record have been Dinkar Gupta and Prabodh Kumar.

The appointment – the third in round 100 days of Chief Minister Charanjit Channi’s temporary tenure – comes shortly earlier than the Election Fee declares dates for subsequent month’s polls.

It additionally comes as Punjab Police (and the state authorities) finds itself within the crosshairs of the centre over the safety lapses involving Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s convoy this week.

Outgoing Punjab DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya and different senior officers have all been summoned by a Union Residence Ministry workforce that’s inquiring into circumstances that led to the Prime Minister’s motorcade being held up on a flyover in Ferozepur district for 20 minutes.

Viresh Kumar Bhawra can have a tenure of two years (minimal) and replaces Mr Chattopadhyaya – who himself was solely appointed in December -as the Congress-ruled state’s prime cop.

Mr Chattopadhyaya was given cost after his predecessor Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota was changed.

Mr Sahota’s appointment in September had triggered (yet one more) row between Navjot Sidhu, chief of the Congress’ state unit, and the Chief Minister, who had chosen Mr Sahota for the job.

Mr Sidhu – whose feud with Amarinder Singh led to him quitting the get together to arrange his outfit and ally with the BJP – made no secret of his dislike for Mr Sahota and then-Advocate-Normal APS Deol.

He was believed to need Mr Chattopadhyaya to turn into the state’s prime cop.

Mr Sidhu wished Mr Deol and Mr Sahota – each appointed by Chief Minister Channi – to be sacked over the 2015 sacrilege and police firing case.

APS Deol had represented two accused cops and Iqbal Sahota was the top of one of many SITs shaped by the then Akali Dal authorities, which Mr Sidhu has blamed for failing to make sure justice.

In November, bowing to incessant strain from Mr Sidhu, Chief Minister Channi had dismissed Mr Deol because the state’s prime lawyer.