Punjab appoints new DGP Viresh Kumar Bhawra after PM Modi’s ‘security lapse’

Senior IPS officer Viresh Kumar Bhawra was appointed as the new Director General of Police (DGP) of the Punjab Police, just hours before the Election Commission (EC) announced the polling dates for all five poll-bound states on Saturday.

Bhawra had been serving as the DGP of the Punjab Home Guards, and will replace outgoing Punjab Police DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya, who has been relieved of his duties as a result of a “serious security lapse” days earlier.

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On January 7, Chattopadhyaya and 13 other police and civic officials appeared before a three-member panel of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) for an inquiry into the security lapse that occurred while Prime Minister Narendra Modi was en route to address a rally and flag off development projects in the Ferozepur district of Punjab.

Poor weather saw the PM adopt a road-based route to his destination, but the PM’s convoy was stopped in its tracks for nearly 15-20 minutes when protesters blocked roads and prevented the convoy from passing through.

Following the security lapse, a war of words broke out between the Congress and the BJP, of which the latter accused the Congress government in Punjab of complicity in the security lapse. Subsequently, the MHA directed the Punjab government to fix accountability and take appropriate action.

Bhawra, a 1987 batch IPS officer, was selected from a panel of three senior officials shortlisted by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), which included senior IPS officers Dinkar Gupta and Prabodh Kumar.

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Announcing Bhawra’s appointment, the Punjab government put out a statement, saying, “On the consideration of the panel received from the UPSC, the Punjab governor is pleased to appoint Viresh Kumar Bhawra, IPS as director general of police, Punjab (Head of Police Force).”

Bhawra’s appointment marks the third DGP appointment by Punjab in as many months.