Maharashtra: Election Commission Appoints 1990-Batch IPS Officer Sanjay Kumar Verma As New DGP Ahead Of Assembly Polls

Mumbai: The Election Commission of India (ECI) has appointed 1990-batch IPS officer Sanjay Kumar Verma as the new Director General of Police (DGP) of Maharashtra ahead of the November 20 assembly elections. He was serving as the Director General of Police (Legal and Technical Wing). Verma, who was at the top of the candidate list for the DGP position, is set to retire in April 2028. He will replace Rashmi Shukla, who was shunted out by the ECI following a complaint of bias by the Congress.

In a letter to the state’s Chief Secretary, ECI Secretary S.K. Das stated, ``I am directed to inform that the Commission has reviewed the panel (of three IPS officers) and approved the appointment of Sanjay Kumar Verma, IPS (MH:1990), for the post of DGP Maharashtra."

After the removal of DGP Rashmi Shukla, the ECI had asked the state government for the names of the three most senior IPS officers of the Maharashtra cadre and Verma was one among them. The other two senior officers in the race were Sanjeev Kumar Singhal and his batchmate Ritesh Kumar. It is noteworthy that a DGP is the highest-ranking IPS officer in a state or Union territory and is responsible for the administration and management of the police force.

Meanwhile, Satyapal Singh, former police commissioner of Mumbai and ex-Union minister, said the removal of Shukla was "unfortunate." He noted that the Congress had not given any evidence of bias against her while demanding her removal.