Fadnavis consults Dy NSA over IPS overhaul

Mumbai: Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday said that he had consulted with India’s Deputy National Security Advisor Datta Padsalgikar prior to an imminent shake up in the Indian Police Service (IPS) of Maharashtra. Speaking on the sidelines of the ongoing Monsoon Session at the state Legislature, Fadnavis told media persons, “It can turn into a challenge if promoted IAS and IPS officers from Maharashtra are given cream posts in the state to fill vacancies. Then, the Union government may cut down postings of officials in both the cadres from the Central government pool.”

Similarly, he pointed out that if IAS and IPS officers from the state cadre on Central deputation were recalled before their three-year tenure was up, it would impact their confidential reports. And it would adversely make them ineligible for future postings to the Centre. Fadnavis expressed unhappiness over the conduct of certain IPS officers in Maharashtra (particularly in Mumbai city) that had tarnished the image of the state and hinted at an imminent overhaul.

During his earlier stint as Maharashtra chief minister, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) had deputed Padsalgikar (then in NIA) as Mumbai city’s police chief. Padsalgikar was tasked with cleaning up the Mumbai police department particularly, to weed out “rotten apples in the police administration” starting at the top. It may be recalled that such IPS officers including disgraced former Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh, Venkatesham, Bipin Bihari and many more IPS officers were shunted out of the city in Padsalgikar’s wake. Fadnavis also lamented that the previous MVA government in Maharashtra had undone all the conscientious work undertaken earlier to clean up the police department by rehabilitating police officers like former Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Pandey, who indulged in corruption.