In an unprecedented development for the Gujarat Police, as many as 14 IPS officers happen to be on leave reserve while still receiving their regular emoluments making it the first instance in history where such a large number of senior officers are in this situation.
It all began on March 16th, when the Lok Sabha election code of conduct was imposed on the Gujarat police. However, the government of Gujarat had already initiated an exercise to transfer IPS officers across the state which got stalled due to an unresolved decision regarding the appointment of the new Surat Police Commissioner. Since then, the transfer and posting of IPS officers have been delayed throughout Gujarat.
The matter became further complicated when the ECI mandated that those officers who had been holding their incumbent positions for more than three years must get transferred – placing as many as 14 IPS officers in an unprecedented leave reserve status. Today, although these officers report to the Gandhinagar Police Bhavan every morning to register their presence, they do not have any specific duties assigned to them. For many, such a predicament highlights the issue of administrative hurdles and imbalance in the deployment of senior police executives brought forth by the imposition of the election code of conduct.
The government of Gujarat has the discretion to call upon these officers if a situation requiring their expertise arises. However, at this juncture, the 14 IPS officers can do nothing except wait for a resolution of their transfer process after the elections.
