Chandigarh Police form SIT to probe IPS officer’s death; NCSC seeks report, wife flags FIR discrepancies

In a significant development, the Chandigarh Police on Friday set up a six-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to probe the death of senior Haryana Police officer Y Puran Kumar, citing the “gravity and sensitivity” of the allegations surrounding the case.

The SIT, formed through an official order issued by the Director General of Police, Chandigarh, will be led by Inspector General of Police Pushpendra Kumar. The team has been tasked with carrying out a “prompt, impartial, and thorough investigation” into the circumstances leading to Mr. Kumar’s death.

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Mr. Kumar, a 2001-batch IPS officer serving as Inspector General of Police at the Police Training Centre (PTC), Sunaria, Rohtak, was found dead with a gunshot wound at his residence in Chandigarh on October 7.

The development came a day after Chandigarh Police registered an FIR in the case, invoking Section 108 read with Section 3(5) (abetment of suicide) and Section 3(1)(r) of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act against the accused named in the deceased officer’s purported note.

Meanwhile, the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) has taken cognisance of the matter and issued a notice to the Chief Secretary and the Director General of Police, Chandigarh.

The Commission has sought a detailed report on the allegations of caste discrimination mentioned by the late officer in a note recovered from his residence. It has directed the authorities to submit the report within seven days, warning that it may invoke its constitutional powers akin to those of a civil court in case of non-compliance.

In a related development, Mr. Kumar’s wife, Amneet P. Kumar, an IAS officer currently serving as Commissioner and Secretary in the Haryana government, has written to the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Chandigarh, alleging irregularities in the FIR.

She claimed that the copy of the FIR provided to her was unsigned, incomplete, and failed to include the names of key accused individuals. “The names of the accused persons have not been mentioned clearly, and the document lacks the necessary details required for a fair and transparent investigation,” she wrote.

Amneet further alleged that despite her original complaint identifying Haryana DGP Shatrujeet Kapur and Rohtak SP Narendra Bijarniya as the “trigger points” for her husband’s suicide, their names were not properly recorded under the designated section of the FIR. She urged the Chandigarh Police to amend the FIR to “accurately reflect the names of all accused individuals in the proper section.”

With the SIT now in place and the NCSC seeking an early report, the case has assumed high sensitivity, bringing renewed attention to issues of workplace harassment, institutional accountability, and caste-based discrimination within the police force.