NEW DELHI: In an unprecedented move, the Election Commission on Sunday suspended Telangana police chief Anjani Kumar hours after he visited state Congress chief Anumula Revanth Reddy with a flower bouquet at the latter’s residence, while the counting for assembly polls was under way. It directed that the next seniormost eligible police officer of Telangana be given charge as the state DGP.
The poll panel also sought explanation from two other officers – Telangana police nodal officer Sanjay Kumar Jain and nodal officer (expenditure) Mahesh M Bhagwat – who had accompanied the DGP to Reddy’s residence around Sunday noon, about the circumstances of their meeting.
EC sources described the DGP’s Sunday noon call on Reddy, a contesting candidate and star campaigner for Congress, in full media glare as a violation of the model code of conduct which is still in force in the state, as well as service conduct rules. “The Telangana DGP opting to meet a contesting candidate out of total 2,290 candidates and the star campaigner of one political party out of 16 political parties in fray, with flower bouquet at his residence when the counting process was still under way, along with two or more senior police officers, is clear indication of mala fide intention of seeking favour,” said an EC functionary.
Sources said Kumar’s suspension, perhaps the first such action to be taken by EC after conclusion of polling, is a stern warning to officials to maintain non-partisanship and impartiality right till the end of the polling process.
The poll panel also sought explanation from two other officers – Telangana police nodal officer Sanjay Kumar Jain and nodal officer (expenditure) Mahesh M Bhagwat – who had accompanied the DGP to Reddy’s residence around Sunday noon, about the circumstances of their meeting.
EC sources described the DGP’s Sunday noon call on Reddy, a contesting candidate and star campaigner for Congress, in full media glare as a violation of the model code of conduct which is still in force in the state, as well as service conduct rules. “The Telangana DGP opting to meet a contesting candidate out of total 2,290 candidates and the star campaigner of one political party out of 16 political parties in fray, with flower bouquet at his residence when the counting process was still under way, along with two or more senior police officers, is clear indication of mala fide intention of seeking favour,” said an EC functionary.
Sources said Kumar’s suspension, perhaps the first such action to be taken by EC after conclusion of polling, is a stern warning to officials to maintain non-partisanship and impartiality right till the end of the polling process.