After storm over IPS officer’s suicide, DGP Kapur sent on leave

Days after being named in the FIR pertaining to the suicide of senior IPS officer Y Puran Kumar, Haryana DGP Shatrujeet Kapur has been sent on leave by the Nayab Singh Saini-led government.

OP Singh, a 1992-batch IPS officer, has been given the additional charge of Director General of Police. Currently posted as Managing Director, Haryana Police Housing Corporation, Singh also holds the charge of Director, Forensic Science Laboratory, Madhuban, and heads the Haryana State Narcotics Control Bureau.

Confirming the development, Chief Minister’s media adviser Rajeev Jaitley said, “DGP Shatrujeet Kapur has been sent on leave.”

The move comes amid mounting pressure on the state government following the allegations levelled in the nine-page suicide note left behind by Puran Kumar. The note names Kapur and Rohtak SP Narendra Bijarniya, among other serving and retired IPS and IAS officers, accusing them of administrative bias, caste-based discrimination and irregularities in postings and annual performance reports (APRs).

Earlier, the state government had already transferred SP Bijarniya, whose name also figured in the FIR.

Sources said the decision to relieve Kapur came after a nod from the BJP high command. With the Opposition attacking the government over alleged rising atrocities against Dalits, the move is seen as an attempt by the ruling BJP to send out a conciliatory message to the community.

In another fallout of the controversy, the BJP cancelled Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s proposed rally at Sonepat on October 17, which was to mark one year of the Saini government. The rally’s cancellation is being seen as linked to the standoff between the Puran Kumar family and the Haryana Government over the delayed post-mortem of the deceased officer.

Kapur, a 1990-batch IPS officer, had assumed charge as Haryana DGP on August 16, 2023, and had already completed his two-year tenure.

The death of Puran Kumar — husband of senior IAS officer Amneet P Kumar — has sent shockwaves through administrative and political circles across the country.