The Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) has shortlisted names of three senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officers for consideration in the appointment of Kerala Police chief when the incumbent Shaik Darvesh Saheb retires from service on June 30.
The UPSC has decided to remove all Additional Directors General of Police (ADGPs) from the list and has named three candidates for the top post. The list includes Road Safety Commissioner Nitin Agarwal, Intelligence Bureau Special Director Ravada A Chandrasekhar, and Fire and Rescue Services Director General Yogesh Gupta.
The onus is now on the state government to pick one officer from among the three. All three shortlisted officers hold DGP rank and fulfill the necessary experience and service requirements. ADGP MR Ajith Kumar, considered close to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, did not make it to the shortlist of candidates for the post.
The UPSC’s decision was based on seniority, with the three officers being the most senior among those considered. DGP Manoj Abraham, ADGP Suresh Raj Purohit, and ADGP M R Ajith Kumar, were not considered by the UPSC as the first three names made the cut on account of their seniority.
Nitin Agarwal, a 1990-batch IPS officer, is the senior-most among the lot. He was the BSF Director General before being repatriated to the state. Currently serving as the Road Safety Commissioner, he is set to retire by June 2026.
Ravada A Chandrasekhar is the Special Director of the Intelligence Bureau (IB). The 1991-batch officer will also retire by June next year. Having been with a premier institution, Ravada has expressed his willingness to rejoin Kerala Police in case he is selected, though the central government has offered him the post of Secretary (Security) in the Cabinet Secretariat.
The tenure of Yogesh Gupta, Director General of the Fire and Rescue Services, will run till 2030. He was recently moved out of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau over differences with the state government.
Although the Centre had directed that only officers with the rank of DGP be considered, the state government had also included officers of ADGP rank in its six-member list.