Updated: September 28, 2020 2:33:44 pm
Patna: JD (U) National President and Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar presents the membership sheet to former DGP Gupteshwar Pandey when he joins the party, in Patna, Sunday, September 27, 2020 (PTI Photo) .
Seven months ago, she started her own YouTube channel and recruited professionals to manage her Facebook and Twitter accounts. Later, he faced opposition for questioning the Bihar government’s handling of a triple murder case in Gopalganj. Last month, he became the face of state prosecution of the suicide case of Sushant Singh Rajput.
On Sunday, everything fell into place.
Within just five days of taking voluntary retirement, His suspended three-month notice period, former Bihar DGP Gupteshwar Pandey joined the ruling JD (U) in the presence of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
The next step? “I will follow the party’s instructions,” he said. But JD (U) sources confirmed that the 59-year-old IPS officer from 1987 is competing for a party ticket from Buxar or Shahpur for state elections starting October 28, or the Lok Sabha bypoll in Valmiki Nagar, which is expected to take place during the same period.
Bend the bar
By waiving its three-month notice period, the Bihar government has done everything possible to facilitate the entry into politics of former DGP Gupteshwar Pandey. However, it is not the first time. Pandey also took to VRS in 2009 to contest the Lok Sabha polls before changing his mind: he was allowed to return as an IGP.
It’s not a surprise, political observers say, given the number of times Pandey has defended the ruling dispensation and the number of times the government has offered his support.
DGP Gupteshwar Pandey with former DGP KS Dwivedi in Patna. (PTI)
Consider this:
📌Pandey had also taken VRS once before, after making his Buxar political ambitions clear before the 2009 elections in Lok Sabha. But when BJP’s Lalmuni Choubey refused to leave his seat, Pandey was allowed to rejoin as an IGP on the recommendation of the then Nitish government to the Center. “My decision to compete at that time was due to the false impression that I was very popular. I hadn’t approached the BJP to get a ticket, and people advised against competing as an Independent, “Pandey told The Indian Express.
📌In the Rajput case, Pandey defended the government on TV channels and social media. He also confronted the Maharashtra police for quarantining Bihar IPS officer Vinay Tiwari in Mumbai. And when Chakaborty questioned Nitish Kumar about the Patna FIR, Pandey told reporters: “Rhea Chakraborty ki aukat nahin hai mukhyamantri se sawal karne ki (Rhea Chakraborty does not have the status to question the CM) ”. When asked about that comment, Pandey said: “Sushant was the pride of Bihar. I supported her elderly father and the FIR was presented according to the provisions of the CrPc, and the Supreme Court also confirmed it. As for my comments on Rhea, I immediately apologized. “
📌In May, Pandey strongly defended the state government, which was being targeted by RJD’s Tejashwi Prasad for its “inept handling” of the triple murder in Gopalganj of the parents and brother of a party activist. The opposition had questioned the government after JD (U) MLA Amrendra Pandey was named a conspirator. But Pandey visited the scene and said that “no one can be arrested on conspiracy charges without a proper investigation.” The DGP also launched a covert attack on Tejashwi, the opposition leader, saying that “people in constitutional positions should collate the facts” before making accusations.
The promptness with which the state government accepted Pandey’s VRS request and waived her notice period illustrates her equation. The additional chief secretary of the Department of the Interior, Amir Subhani, said the government “has the discretionary power” to waive the notice period. Pandey said: “I had only cited personal reasons for requesting an exemption. It was CM Nitish Kumar who resigned him. “
When asked if there should be a cooling off period for government officials after retirement, Pandey said: “It should be there if a person takes up a government or constitutional office shortly after retirement. It would seem as if the government is returning a favor. But it cannot be valid for someone who goes to the public and engages in politics. I’ve always been with the public. “
However, it is obvious that Pandey’s political entry has been in the works for a while. His social media accounts have been showing “career highlights”: how 42 feared criminals were killed in encounters with the police during his tenure as Begusarai SP; how he approached the Maoist problem like Jehanabad SP; and how it had stopped and prevented communal confrontations with its community policing model.
In fact, a day after Pandey took on VRS, a music video depicting him as “Robin Hood” went viral in the state.
Today, the former chief cop prefers silence to a single question: will he compete from Buxar or Shahpur? “Why only two assembly segments? People from more than a dozen constituencies in West Champaran, Begusarai and Sitamarhi want me to get involved from there, ”he said.
📣 The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay up to date with the latest headlines
For the latest news about India, download the Indian Express app.
© The Indian Express (P) Ltd
.
