Delhi top cop's gain is Mumbai Police commissioner's loss?

With state DGP Subodh Jaiswal most likely heading to Delhi and CP Sanjay Barve set to retire this month, state to have uphill task finding replacements

Mumbai Police Commissioner Sanjay Barve could have added yet another feather to his cap by becoming the head of the state police (Director General of the entire force), albeit for a brief time, had the Centre not given a month's service extension to his Delhi counterpart Amulya Patnaik.

Since the Centre has asked the state government to relieve the incumbent Maharashtra DGP Subodh Kumar Jaiswal for appointing him in the Centre cadre - most likely as the chief of Delhi police --Barve's prospects of making it to the state police headquarters were very bright, as the political leadership isn't very interested in promoting a particular officer, who is next after Jaiswal in the seniority list.

Sources in the state government said Jaiswal would continue in the top post till the Centre's demand is met, or he may be asked to serve the full tenure that ends in mid-2022. "A letter seeking Jaiswal's services was received by the state two days ago," a senior official in Mantralaya said.
And if the state DG continues to work for a month - till the end of February -- Barve will be retiring from the Indian Police Service (IPS) at that time. The city CP has already seen a six-month extension in the service that ends on February 29. This means the state home department will have to appoint a new CP as well as state DG, if Jaiswal is allowed to join the Centre, by the end of February.

"The appointment of state police chief is a longer process than it for the city CP. The state could have made an exception to the process by appointing Barve (1987 batch of IPS) as the state DG for a month's time, and simultaneously taken up a procedure to appoint Barve's replacement in the state HQ," said the officer, adding that the selection of the state police chief involves sending the names of at least five DG rank officers to the Union government and Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) which shortlists three eligible candidates for the state's consideration.

Jaiswal (IPS batch of 1985) has about three years of service left. Though reports that the Centre wanted Jaiswal to command the Delhi force were not substantiated fully, the intent of getting him out of Maharashtra was confirmed through the Union government's letter that asked for the DG's release.

Notwithstanding the government's indecisiveness in allowing Jaiswal's exit, lobbying for the two top posts – the state DG and Mumbai CP -- has already begun in the political parlance. According to sources, Sanjay Pandey, a 1986-batch officer who is DG (Home Guards), was unlikely to be considered for the state DG's post because the previous governments, including the 15-year Congress-NCP rule and the BJP-Shiv Sena's, did not give him executive postings.

With Barve's chances bleak, his 1987 batch mates Bipin Bihari, SN Pandey, D Kanakrathnam and Hemant Nagrale are in the reckoning for the state post. For Mumbai CP's post, Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACP) boss Parambir Singh is said to be a frontrunner.

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