Bengal DGP appointment hits hurdle as UPSC returns panel

Kolkata: The Union Public Service Commission has returned the West Bengal government’s panel for appointment of the Director General of Police (DGP), asking the state to seek clarification from the Supreme Court of India.

The move has led to an administrative impasse as DGP Rajeev Kumar’s tenure ends on January 31.

In a December 31, 2025, letter signed by Nand Kishore Kumar, Director (AIS), UPSC, and addressed to then Home Secretary Nandini Chakravarty, the Commission said the state had caused an “abnormal and unexplained delay” in starting the DGP appointment process, contrary to Supreme Court guidelines. The UPSC said it could not proceed further and advised the state to approach the apex court.

The letter refers to the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in the Prakash Singh case, which lays down the procedure for selection of a state police chief. According to the UPSC, the post of DGP (Head of Police Force) in West Bengal is deemed to have fallen vacant on December 28, 2023. As per the court’s directions, the state was required to forward a panel of eligible officers to the UPSC at least three months before the anticipated vacancy. By that standard, the proposal should have been sent by September 2023. However, the Commission noted that the state submitted the panel only in July 2025, nearly one and a half years later.

Despite the delay, the UPSC convened a meeting of the empanelment committee on October 30, 2025. Serious differences arose among members over the date of vacancy and the legal validity of proceeding with empanelment after such delay. In this backdrop, the UPSC sought the opinion of the Attorney General of India. The Attorney General found no provision allowing the Commission to condone the delay, warned that accepting the proposal could deny eligible officers a fair opportunity, and said the appropriate course was for the state government to seek directions from the

Supreme Court.