Anomalous Situation In Jharkhand: DGP Anurag Gupta, Even After Retirement Date, Continues

Gupta, a Jharkhand cadre Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of 1990-batch, was appointed as DGP on February 3, following a notification issued by the state government, stating that his tenure will be in line with Rule 10 (1) of the Selection and Appointment Rules 2025 of Director General and Inspector General of Police Jharkhand (Chief of Police Force).

But the Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) — the cadre controlling authority for the IPS — in a letter to the state government, a copy of which is with The Secretariat, has directed that Gupta was scheduled for retirement from service on April 30, 2025, the date of his superannuation.

Gupta, who first assumed the role of DGP in-charge of Jharkhand on July 26, 2024, was removed from the post in a routine process during the state Assembly elections by the Election Commission of India. But after the election results, he was reinstated as DGP on November 28, 2024. 

Reportedly, the DGP’s salary for May was not remitted, as the Accountant General’s records show that Gupta "retired" on April 30. The sources further confirmed that the office of the Principal Accountant General (PAG) has issued Gupta a zero-salary slip, considering that he had retired on April 30. 

Bureaucracy watchers say that this is an administrative glitch that needs to be resolved, and a solution found soon. But as of now, Gupta faces a piquant situation, where the “legal tenability” of decisions he has taken since his "retirement" needs to be addressed. 

Now, everybody is watching the situation with curiosity, waiting to see how the issue is resolved.