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News India Live, Digital Desk: The tussle between West Bengal and the Center is nothing new, but this time the issue is regarding the highest police post of the state i.e. the chair of DGP. The Mamata Banerjee government of West Bengal had sent a list of names of some officers to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for the appointment of the next DGP. But what happened is that UPSC has returned that list.
Now the question arises that why did such a big constitutional institution return the list? Were the rules really ignored or is the story something else?
Where is the problem with rules and papers?
According to the information, UPSC has found some ‘shortcomings’ in the proposal sent by the state government. Actually, whenever DGP is appointed in any state, there are some strict guidelines for him by the Supreme Court and UPSC.
It is being told that in the list sent by the Bengal government, there were some technical problems regarding the tenure of the officers, their seniority and necessary documents. The job of UPSC is to see whether the names sent are the most eligible as per the rules. This time’s list probably did not have the clarity that the Commission expected.
Is it just a matter of papers or something else?
Political experts say that Mamata government wants the command of the police to be in the hands of an officer who understands the circumstances of the state better (or perhaps is ‘close’ to her). At the same time, the rules say that there should be at least six months of tenure left before retirement and the service profile of the officers should be absolutely clean.
When UPSC returned the file, it also asked some questions. Now the Bengal government will have to prepare the entire file again, which is certainly a time-consuming and troublesome task for them.
What will happen next now?
Obviously, until UPSC gives its approval to the new list and finalizes the panel of three names, the permanent appointment of the new DGP will remain in limbo. This not only creates suspense at the administrative level, but also gives the opposition parties an opportunity to raise questions on the government.
Now it remains to be seen whether Mamata government sends the same names as per the rules next time or whether some major changes will be seen in the list.
How do you view this whole controversy? Should state governments have complete freedom to choose their police chief? Please tell us your opinion in the comments.
