UP cabinet clears new rules for appointment of DGP through selection committee

Lucknow: The Uttar Pradesh government has approved a new set of rules for independent and transparent selection of director general of police (DGP) by a committee headed by a retired high court judge.

The Appointment Rules, 2024 were cleared by the state cabinet at a meeting here on Monday.

With this, the government will not have to send names to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) panel for the appointment of the state police chief.

"The objective of the Appointment Rules, 2024 is to establish an independent and transparent mechanism for selection of a suitable person for appointment to the post of DGP to ensure that the said selection is free from political or executive interference and is also in accordance with the specific conditions and policing requirements of Uttar Pradesh," the new guidelines said.

The selection committee will be headed by a retired high court judge. It will have the chief secretary, a UPSC nominee, Uttar Pradesh Public Service Commission chairman or nominee, Home Department additional chief secretary or principal secretary, and a retired state DGP as its members, according to the guidelines.

To be eligible for selection, candidates must have six months of service remaining on the date of creation of the vacancy. Only those officers who are currently serving in the DG role at Level 16 of the Pay Matrix will be considered, the guidelines stated.

The minimum tenure of the DGP will be two years, they said.

The new rules adhere to the Supreme Court directives for the removal of DGP before the completion of the stipulated two-year term in case of criminal charges, corruption or failure to perform duties effectively.

They are in line with the directives issued by the SC to states in the case of Prakash Singh and Others vs Union of India in which the court asked for the enactment of a new police law to ensure that police are free from external pressures, safeguard citizen's rights and uphold the rule of law.

Reacting to the development on Tuesday, Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav asked if this was an attempt by the state government to take the reins from Delhi into its own hands.

"I have heard that arrangements are being made to give a permanent post to a senior officer and extend his tenure by 2 years... The question is whether the person making the arrangements will himself stay for 2 years or not. Is this an attempt to take the reins from Delhi into their own hands," he said in a post on X in Hindi without naming anyone.