The Odisha government has reshuffled 55 senior IPS officers in the state, including SPs of 21 districts, just days after an Army officer and his fiancee were allegedly tortured and assaulted in a police station.
Sources told India Today TV that irregularities exposed during the investigation of the case have been considered a key factor behind the massive police reshuffle.
KEY LEADERSHIP CHANGES
Among the most notable transfers is the reassignment of Additional Director General of Police Arun Bothra, who was earlier involved in overseeing certain aspects of the investigation. Bothra has been appointed as the Additional Director General (Railways & Coastal Security). Similarly, RP Koche was appointed as the new Director of Intelligence.
Vinaytosh Misra, the former Director of the State Crime Record Bureau, has been appointed as the new head of the Crime Investigation Department. This leadership change is being seen as a critical step to ensure a fair and impartial probe into the case.
Bhubaneswar-Cuttack Police Commissioner Sanjeeb Panda was made ADG (Training) and Director of Biju Patnaik State Police Academy (BPSPA). Suresh Dev Detta Singh will replace Panda as the police commissioner of Bhubaneswar-Cuttack, according to the notification.
Anup Kumar Sahoo was posted as IGP (Training) at BPSPA, whereas S Shyni was appointed as IGP (Crime Against Women and Children Wing).
The government said it has appointed Pinak Mishra as the new Deputy Commissioner of Police of Bhubaneswar. He will replace Prateek Singh, who has been transferred as Superintendent of Police of Cuttack (Rural).
Ganjam SP Jagmohan Mena was appointed as the DCP of Cuttack, while Loganayagi Divya V was appointed the SP of Vigilance.
The Army officer’s fiancée alleged that she was thrashed and molested at Bharatpur Police Station, while her Army officer-fiancée was illegally locked up by the police on September 15. The incident happened when the couple went to lodge a complaint over a road rage case.
The woman also claimed that she was repeatedly kicked on her chest, dragged by her hair before a police inspector assaulted and also flashed her.
She was arrested as she bit one of the officers in self-defence. However, the woman was granted bail by the Orissa High Court.
As the incident triggered a nationwide outrage, five police officials, including the inspector-in-charge of Bharatpur Police Station, were suspended for negligence during the investigation. Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Majhi has also ordered a judicial probe by a retired judge.
These officers were taken to Gandhinagar in Gujarat, along with the CID’s investigative team, for polygraph tests.