Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav, on Tuesday, took a jibe at Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath after the state cabinet approved new rules for the appointment of the director general of police.

With the enforcement of the new ‘Director General of Police, Uttar Pradesh Selection and Appointment Rules, 2024, the approval of the  Union Home Ministry will not be needed for the appointment of the new DGP. Under the new rules, the selection and appointment of the state’s police chief will be done by a committee chaired by a retired judge of the High Court.

“I have heard that arrangements are being made to grant a senior official a permanent position and extend his tenure by two years. The question is, will those making this arrangement themselves be around for two years? Could this be an attempt to take control from Delhi into their own hands? "Delhi vs Lucknow 2.0,” the SP chief said in a post on X while responding to the UP government’s new guidelines for selection and appointment of the DGP.

"The policy requires a nomination committee headed by a retired judge of the High Court to appoint the police chief in the state. It also establishes a minimum tenure of two years for the DGP.

The Uttar Pradesh government has approved a new set of rules giving itself the authority to appoint the DGP at the state level. Seeking the approval of the Union Public Service Commission for the appointment will no longer be required.

In a cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, the Director General of Police, Uttar Pradesh Selection and Appointment Rules, 2024 was approved.

As per the new manual, the DGP will be appointed only when there are at least six months left in the officer’s service. To be eligible for selection, candidates must have six months of service remaining on the date of creation of the vacancy and only those officers who are currently serving as DG at Level 16 of the Pay Matrix will be considered for the new role.

The next UP assembly elections are due in March 2027, nearly two years from now. The Samajwadi Party, which gave a noteworthy performance in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections, is hoping to continue the winning streak in the 2027 assembly polls.