The Yogi Adityanath Government is likely to face awkward situations as ‘seniority’ of several officers were ignored while posting them. What is more surprising is that the current DGP Sulkhan Singh is very particular about the ‘seniority’ factor which has been grossly ignored.
While being posted at the training directorate during the SP regime, Surya Kumar Shukla of 1982 IPS batch was posted as the head of the wing and Singh (1980 batch) became his junior officer. later, Singh and one of his batchmates posted there threatened to proceed on leave if Shukla was not removed or they were not transferred to another department. Then CM Akhilesh Yadav resolved the issue by cancelling Shukla’s transfer order.
With the current regime ignoring seniority in posting, IPS officers indicated that either Sulkhan Singh had no role in the exercise and officers doing the job did a blunder or now ‘seniority’ has ceased to be an issue for the DGP.
Going by the present hierarchy, after the DGP it is ADG (law and order) or ADG (crime) who supervise law and order through zonal IGs, range DIGs and districts SPs.
Currently, Aditya Mishra and Chandra Prakash-1 are posted as ADG (law and order) and ADG (crime) respectively and are batchmates from 1989.
Ironically, under Mishra and Prakash, a 1987 batch officer Biswajit Mahapatra has been posted as ADG (Varanasi zone) which makes it mandatory for him to take ‘instructions’ on the law and order front from his two junior colleagues.
Similarly, 1988 batch IPS officer Anand Kumar has been posted as ADG (Meerut) and he too would have to play a subordinate role during law and order review meetings to Mishra and Prakash.
Sources further confirmed that Government also ignored the factor while making posting in districts. While 2005 batch officer Deepak Kumar, who is yet to get the selection grade, has been posted as SSP of lucknow ignoring seniors like Sonia Singh and Manoj Tewari of 2003 batch, Chandra Prakash-2 and love Kumar of 2004 batch. All these officers have got selection grade and despite that have been posted in less important districts.
When contacted, a senior officer said that the move was bound to boomerang just like the previous try during Mayawati’s regime after which the then Government had to roll back to the traditional practice.