Maharashtra Assembly Elections 2024: DGP Rashmi Shukla Transferred Amid Opposition's Phone-Tapping Allegations Ahead Of Polls

Mumbai: The Election Commission has removed Rashmi Shukla from her position as Maharashtra's Director General of Police (DGP) following a complaint from the Congress. After Shukla's transfer, the Maharashtra government on Monday assigned Mumbai Police Commissioner Vivek Phansalkar additional charge as the state's DGP.

The Election Commission instructed the state government to transfer Shukla immediately, citing complaints from political parties, including the opposition Congress, ahead of the upcoming assembly elections on November 20.

The Election Commission directed Maharashtra's Chief Secretary to hand over Shukla's responsibilities to the next senior IPS officer in the cadre. Accordingly, IPS officer Phansalkar, from the 1989 batch, has been given additional charge as DGP until a new state police chief is appointed.

This marks the second time Phansalkar has been assigned the additional role of the state’s top police officer. Previously, after the retirement of then-DGP Rajnish Seth, Phansalkar was temporarily given the role of state police chief from December 31, 2023, to January 9, 2024.

When there was a change of power in Maharashtra, Shukla was brought back and appointed as the DGP. She had retired in June of this year but was granted an extension by the state government. Since the announcement of the assembly elections in Maharashtra, opposition parties, including the Congress, had been calling for Shukla's removal.

Based on the seniority IPS Vivek Phansalkar, Sanjay Verma, Ritesh Kumar And Sanjeev Singhal, One of these names is likely to be considered for the DGP position. Since Rashmi Shukla has been removed from her role as Maharashtra’s DGP by the Election Commission, the next senior-most IPS officer in line is Vivek Phansalkar. This explains why Phansalkar has been given additional charge as the DGP until a new appointment is made. This temporary assignment aligns with the directive to assign the role to the "next senior-most"