DCP Shukla among five top cops shifted on EC orders

The Election Commission on Monday transferred five IPS officers with immediate effect, including DCP (crime) in the city, Himanshu Shukla, who has been appointed Patan SP.

Shukla is the investigating officer of the Supreme Court-appointed SIT probing post-Godhra riots of 2002.

Others who were transferred by the Home Department on EC's instructions are JCP (Crime) Arun Sharma, Jamnagar SP Harikrishna Patel, Patan SP M S Bharada and DCP (Surat) N D Solanki.

"The EC has transferred five IPS officers. We had sent them a list of postings for these officers and after a discussion with them, the postings were allotted," Principal Secretary (Home) S K Nanda said.

Sharma swaps places with Vikas Sahay, who was serving as deputy director in Raksha Shakti University. Sahay was recently in controversy when two boys and six girls were arrested for hosting a late night liquor party at his rented apartment in Ahmedabad.

Shukla swaps places with M S Bharada, the Patan SP who has now been posted as DCP (Crime) in Ahmedabad. Shukla served in the DCB for almost three years after his predecessor Abhay Chudasama was arrested by CBI in connection with the Sohrabuddin encounter case.

Both Sharma and Shukla were accused of tapping mobile phones of Congress leaders illegally and keeping track of their movements.

In a memorandum to the EC, the state Congress had accused the two of "going out of their way to please the CM and his ministers".

According to sources, the EC had transferred Shukla to Jamanagar but the state government took up the issue with the EC to retain him as Patan SP so that he was closer to Gandhinagar, where the SC-appointed SIT's office is located.

"We are talking to the EC to bring back Saurabh Tolumbia, who is due to return from his deputation from Nagaland," a top official from the Home Department said.

... contd.

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