As per the Supreme Court’s February 5 orders, the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has asked Punjab government to submit a proposal of eligible officers to be considered by its empanelment committee for the regular appointment of the DGP in the state.
As per sources, the Punjab Home Department has requested the names of eligible officers from the DGP’s office. The decision is likely to ensure that Punjab will have a permanent DGP before the next year’s Assembly polls. Reportedly, the Supreme Court has expressed concern over the practice of some states having acting DGPs and has given clear instructions to UPSC to act against them calling it unsuitable.
The Supreme Court directed the UPSC to seek names from governments at its own level. After submission of potential candidates, the government will select one out of them and appoint him as permanent DGP.
As per reports, it is being alleged that there are six possible names that can feature in this list – Parag Jain, 1989, Dr Sharad Satya Chauhan, 1992, Harpreet Singh Sidhu, 1992, Gaurav Yadav, 1992, Kuldeep Singh, 1992, Gurpreet Kaur Deo, 1993.
Parag Jain, an Indian bureaucrat who is serving as RAW chief on central deputation is also among one in the list of top contenders. The names of Sharad Satya Chauhan, Harpreet Sidhu, and Kuldeep Singh are also on the panel for the permanent DGP and are being considered and making it a tough call to make.
Talking about Harpreet Singh Sidhu, 1992, it is noteworthy that the ministry of home affairs (MHA) has already approved his premature repatriation to his parent cadre, Punjab. He has been promoted as promoted as special DGP in Punjab and as per reports his reason to have opted out of his parent cadre is because the Centre appointed Praveen Kumar from the 1993 batch as ITBP director general.
Sidhu was serving as ADGP, prisons, when the Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party government came to power in March 2022. Following that his batchmate, Gaurav Yadav was appointed, as acting DGP of Punjab.
Despite the initial controversy over his appointment, the current acting DGP of Punjab Gaurav Yadav remains a frontrunner for the permanent post. He has held the post of DGP in Punjab for the past 3.5 years.
The Supreme Court's warning that the UPSC is permitted to file an action before the court for enforcement with "necessary consequences" for individuals responsible for the delay if the states fail to submit timely proposals was referenced in the UPSC letter to Punjab.