Just before the 2024 parliamentary polls, the Haryana government enacted a major bureaucratic reshuffle of 18 IPS and HPS officers on 1 March 2024, vide an order issued by Home Department of Haryana and senior IPS official Amitabh Singh Dhillon, a 1997 batch IPS of Haryana Cadre, who last month got promoted in the rank of ADGP has been appointed the new chief and Additional Director General (ADGP) in Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB), Haryana relieving the Senior IPS Shatrujit Kapur who holds the portfolio of the DGP. Notably, earlier he was posted as IGP in the ACB. It is worth mentioning that around a year ago in February, 2023 the name of the then Haryana State Vigilance Bureau was changed to Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB). At that time, Shatrujeet Kapoor, who is believed to be very close to the Chief Minister and a 1990 batch IPS of Haryana Cadre was posted as Director-General (DG) of ibid Bureau from Sep, 2021. Six months later on August 16, 2023, Kapoor was however appointed as the Director General of Police (DGP), the police chief, Haryana for a minimum tenure of at least two years from the date of his assumption of charge and till further orders thereafter,
Meanwhile, pertaining to the matter, an expert and advocate at the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Hemant Kumar wrote to the Haryana Government firstly in September last year seeking that in the appointment Order of Kapoor as Haryana DGP (HoPF) issued by the State Home Department on 16 Aug 2023, it was not mentioned therein that if he would also hold the additional charge of DG, ACB. Even later onwards, no formal Order was available in public domain pertaining to the State Govt delegating aforementioned additional charge of DG, ACB to DGP, Haryana, Shatrujeet Kapoor.
Further, giving more details, Hemant said that even on the official website of the Haryana Police, in the list of State Cadre IPS officers, Kapoor was being shown as DGP, Haryana and there was no mention of the additional charge of DG, ACB, However, on the official website of ACB, Haryana, Kapoor’s name was however being shown as DG, ACB. Be that as it may, on 19 Oct 2023, 15 Inspector rank officials serving in ACB, Haryana were transferred via an Order issued under the signature of Shatrujeet Kapoor who was mentioned therein as DG, ACB, Haryana which further substantiated the aforementioned fact. Amidst prevalence of this ambiguity, he again wrote to the State Government in November last year for proactive public disclosure over if Shatrujeet Kapoor, apart from having principal charge as DGP, the state police chief , Haryana was also DG, ACB, Haryana as an additional charge or as Link Officer. He said that the system of Link Officer is prevalent in the Personnel Department of the State Government in respect of IAS/HCS officers especially those posted on higher and important posts and a comprehensive list pertaining to Link Officers is available in the official website of the Chief Secretary, Haryana.
Elaborating this system of Link Officer, Hemant explained that in the event of absence of IAS/HCS officers being on leave/training/tour/election duty or away for more than two days due to any other reason or in the event of vacancy due to retirement/transfer of officer, the work will be looked after by the respective Link Officers. Further it was shared by the expert that till date it is not officially clear whether the Link Officer system is also applicable in the State Home Department in respect of IPS officers or not, especially regarding important and sensitive posts like DG, ACB. Further , he had appealed to the Haryana Government to issue proper public clarification in this regard. Officially, Haryana DGP (HoPF) can concurrently be DG, ACB only under two circumstances. Firstly, if DGP, Haryana is the link officer of the post of DG, ACB or else Haryana DGP is formally given the additional charge of DG, ACB by the State Government.
