Pb IPS officer shifted on EC directive transferred to old posting

The Punjab government Monday shifted IPS officer Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh, who was transferred by the Election Commission for violation of poll code, to his old posting as IG of Organised Crime Control Unit (OCCU).

Singh will also hold the additional charge of IG, Counter Intelligence, Amritsar, an official statement said here.

Chief Minister Amarinder Singh, who also heads the Home Department, had, during his election campaign, announced that the Inspector General of Police rank officer would be back to complete the SIT investigation.

Pratap Singh is a member of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing the 2015 sacrilege and police firing incidents.

The IG had been posted to Counter Intelligence after he was shifted out of OCCU on EC orders for alleged violation of the model of code conduct.

Amarinder had earlier alleged the orders were issued at the behest of then ruling BJP an ally of the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD), whose top leaders, including the Badals, have figured in the investigation so far.

The Justice Ranjit Singh Commission, set up by the Amarinder Singh government to probe the cases, had suggested further investigation into the role of the Badals, which the SIT was probing.

Amarinder has maintained that the firing on peaceful protestors could not have been possible without the knowledge of then chief minister Parkash Singh Badal and then deputy CM Sukhbir Badal, who also held the Home portfolio.

He has promised stringent action, as per the law, against those found culpable by the SIT.

Last month, the Election Commission had directed the Punjab government to divest Kunwar Vijay Pratap Singh of his charge as Inspector General (IG) of police, OCCU for "violating" model code of conduct.

The EC's direction came after a complaint was lodged by the SAD against the officer. Following the directions of the poll panel, the Punjab government had posted him as Inspector General of Counter Intelligence (Amritsar).

In a communication sent to the chief secretary of Punjab, the EC last month wrote that it had received a complaint from Rajya Sabha MP Naresh Gujral (Akali Dal leader) against the IPS officer.

"The matter was examined and it was found that the officer gave politically motivated interview to a TV channel on March 18 and 19 about ongoing investigation by SIT and made certain political comments," said the letter.

"It has also been observed that the contents of the part of the interview have political connotations and have the potential to show certain political leaders in poor light. The officer also mentioned the name of leaders of SAD which is clearly in violation of the provision of model code of conduct," it said.

Meanwhile, the Punjab government had told the EC that the SIT was functioning independently.

It also accused the Akali Dal of trying to use the EC by filing "frivolous" complaints, aimed at "sabotaging" the SIT probe into the 2015 sacrilege and police firing incidents.

The polling for 13 Lok Sabha seats in the state was held in the final phase on May 19.