Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann recently made headlines with his statement that Indian hockey players could be made Senior Superintendents of Police (SSPs) if Punjab gets the hosting rights for the 2030 Hockey World Cup. But this is not an entirely new connection between hockey and policing in the state, as Punjab already has former international hockey players serving in the police force, with some having reached senior positions.
One such name is Gagan Ajit Singh, a former Indian hockey captain, who is currently serving as the SSP of Fazilka. He officially assumed charge after a Punjab government transfer order dated May 5, 2026, posted him to the district.
Gagan Ajit Singh represented India at the 2000 and 2004 Olympic Games. Before taking charge in Fazilka, he had also served as SSP Malerkotla and his appointment puts a former international hockey player in charge of policing in a Punjab district.
But is he the only former hockey player holding an SSP post in Punjab? A look at other police appointments shows why the distinction between former players, police officers and current SSPs is important.
Kanwalpreet Singh Chahal took charge as SSP Amritsar Rural in June 2026 after the transfer of Sohail Qasim Mir an he is currently heading the district police. He was a core member of the Indian team that won the Gold Medal at the 2001 Hobart Junior World Cup, famously scoring the decisive winning goal against the Netherlands.
The appointment of sportspersons in Punjab Police is not new. In December 2016, the state government appointed six international hockey players as Deputy Superintendents of Police (DSPs) under the sports quota.
The list included Manpreet Singh, Akashdeep Singh, Sarvanjit Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Gurwinder Singh Chandi and Dharamvir Singh and these players were part of the Indian men's hockey team that won gold at the 2014 Asian Games.
In another major move, five international sportspersons, including former Indian hockey captain Rajpal Singh and hockey player Gurbaj Singh, were promoted to the rank of Superintendent of Police (SP) in June 2020.
More recently, in February 2024, the Mann government handed over appointment letters for Punjab Police Service (PPS) and Punjab Civil Services (PCS) posts to 11 sportspersons, including nine hockey players from India's bronze-medal-winning Tokyo Olympics team.
Five hockey players, Harmanpreet Singh, Mandeep Singh, Varun Kumar, Shamsher Singh and Dilpreet Singh, opted for PPS posts, while Rupinder Pal Singh, Simranjit Singh, Hardik Singh and Gurjant Singh were given PCS appointments.
At present, Gagan Ajit Singh is the clearly verified example of a former international hockey player currently serving as a district SSP in Punjab and other former hockey players have also held senior police positions in the state over the years.
Mann's recent statement, however, goes beyond giving players police appointments.
He has linked the proposed 2030 Hockey World Cup hosting rights with opportunities to appoint members of the Indian men's hockey team to senior government positions.
