Massive civil, police rejig hours before Election Commission announces elections in J&K

Adil Akhzer

Srinagar, August 16

Ahead of the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly elections, which were announced for the first time after the abrogation of special status, a massive reshuffle was conducted in the Civil and Police Department with the reshuffling of over 280 officers in the Union Territory within hours. The move, however, raised eyebrows, with the J&K National Conference stating it would write to the Election Commission about the massive shifting.

Starting from Thursday night, the authorities transferred officers not only at middle rung, but transferred Deputy Commissioners and SSPs of several districts of the UT. The big first shifting took place at civil administration level late on Thursday night when Lieutenant Governor-led administration ordered the shifting of 95 officers, both in the IAS and Jammu and Kashmir Administrative Services, in two different orders. Heads of several districts were shifted both in the valley and Jammu region. Several officials from the J&K Resident Commission in New Delhi were also moved. On Friday, another three orders were issued, according to which 51 senior officers were shifted.

It did not stop here. The J&K Home Department also issued several transfer orders and Deputy Inspector Generals (DIGs) and Superintendents of Police (SPs) were also transferred. In the five orders issued by the J&K Home Department on Friday, more than 84 officers were shifted at various levels.

Among those transferred were heads of 10 districts in the UT. The order that was issued on Friday saw shifting of three district SPs in Kashmir while seven districts in the Jammu region got new police heads.

One of the top shifts ordered by the Home Department was the appointment of 1999-batch IPS officer Nitish Kumar, currently the Additional Director General of Police (ADGP), Crime Investigation Department (CID), and was made the head of J&K’s CID wing. J&K DGP RR Swain had been holding the charge of the top post since June 2020. Swain continues to hold the post even though he was made the in-charge DGP and was confirmed as the DGP this month. Swain will retire on September 30 and IPS officer Nalin Prabhat will be the new DGP of the UT. This was announced by the Central Government on Thursday.

The administration has also shifted over 50 officers in other departments, including health. Amid the massive transfer orders, the J&K National Conference raised several questions. “Why has a massive reshuffle been ordered in the police and administration since last evening, and today morning, seemingly to pre-empt the Election Commission’s announcement? It appears to have been orchestrated by the BJP-appointed L-G to benefit his party and its allies,” said party’s general secretary Ali Mohamad Sagar.

He said the L-G-led administration “has strategically shaken up the entire administrative setup, compromising the principles of free and fair elections.” Sagar said, “We call on the @ECISVEEP to thoroughly investigate this blatant attempt and immediately suspend the implementation of these orders.”

NC Vice-President Omar Abdullah also chipped in. “The J&K administration had to call officers in the secretariat and police headquarters to work on Independence Day to order this massive reshuffle. This means that they had absolutely NO CLUE that the ECI would be announcing poll dates today,” he wrote on X. He says his party “suspects a biased intent on the part of the J&K LG”.

Three phases

• First phase: Notification on August 20, last date of nominations Aug 27, last date of withdrawal Aug 30; poll September 18
• Second phase: Notification on Aug 29; last date of nominations Sept 5; scrutiny Sept 6; last date of withdrawal Sept 9; polling Sept 25
• Third phase: Notification Sept 5; last date for nominations Sept 12; last date for withdrawal of candidature Sept 17; polling Oct 1