West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee with former West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar.
Credit: PTI Photo
The Election Commission of India (ECI) on Monday, directed the removal of West Bengal DGP Rajeev Kumar and mandated the appointment of Vivek Sahay, once suspended by the poll panel, as the new state police chief.
This decision prompted a duel between the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and opposition Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). While BJP welcomed the decision, TMC accused the saffron party of 'controlling the constitutional body'.
TMC's accusation does not only stem from political rivalry but party supremo Mamata Banerjee's connect with Kumar.
Kumar's allegiance to Mamata goes back to 2019, when TMC supremo held a 70-hour dharna against CBI raid conducted on Kumar's residence.
Here's a look at who Kumar is and how his allegiance to Mamata has saved him from controversies
Who is Rajeev Kumar?
Rajeev Kumar, a 1989 batch IPS officer, is an alumnus of IIT Roorkee who held prominent positions such as Commissioner of Kolkata Police, Joint Commissioner (Special Task Force), and Director General (CID), among others.
According to an Indian Express report, He was appointed commissioner of the Bidhannagar police commissionerate in January, 2012 and commissioner of police in Kolkata in 2016.
When the Saradha scam broke out in 2013, he was appointed as the head of a special task force that investigated the case.
Saradha scheme was a multi-crore ponzi scheme in which over a dozen TMC MLAs and MPs, including ministers, were questioned by the CBI, Business Standard reported.
Kumar arrested two people in connection with the scam in 2013 but in 2019, he himself was accused by the CBI of allegedly suppressing and destroying evidence in the case. He was additionally accused of phone-tapping by the opposition.
Following these allegations, the EC asked the state government to remove Kumar from his post and on February 3, 2019, CBI conducted a raid at his residence.
Kumar's allegiance to Mamata
Followed by the CBI raid at Kumar's residence, TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, staged a dharna in Kolkata's Esplanade alleging Centre's high handedness, IE reported.
Mamata ended her dharna after 70 hours when Supreme Court directed that 'no coercive steps including arrest' should be taken against Kumar and also directed Kumar to cooperate with the central agency.
In compliance with the EC order, Kumar was removed from commissioner's post in 2019. However, he was brought back as soon as the polls ended with TMC's win.
Appointed as the state DGP last December, Kumar was moved to the Information and Technology department, an assignment not related to the election. He was the secretary of the same department before being appointed as the state police chief.
On Monday, the government named Vivek Sahay as the new police chief. However, he was removed from the post within 24 hours by the EC and state government was directed to appoint Sanjay Mukherjee in his place.