Pramod Kumar, a 1989 batch IPS officer, is set to be included in a panel for promotion to the rank of Director General of Police (DGP), according to an order issued by Dheeraj Kumar, the Additional Chief Secretary to the Tamil Nadu Home Department.
Several of Pramod Kumar’s batchmates, including P. Kandaswamy, Mohammad Shakeel Akther, Rajesh Das, Braj Kishore Ravi, and K.C. Mahali, have already retired from the uniformed services.
DGP Shankar Jiwal, the current head of the Tamil Nadu police force, is one-year junior to Pramod Kumar. While his peers were promoted to Additional Director General of Police in 2014 and Director General of Police in 2020, Pramod Kumar’s promotion was delayed due to pending criminal and disciplinary proceedings against him.
Pramod Kumar gained attention in the aftermath of the Paazee Forex scam, a multi-crore rupee fraud case that came to light in September 2009 after depositors filed complaints with the Tirupur police. The company’s directors, K. Mohanraj, K. Kathiravan, and Kamalavalli Arumugam, were arrested for cheating depositors. In 2012, Pramod Kumar was suspended following allegations of his involvement with those connected to the case.
A native of Bihar, Pramod Kumar challenged the departmental disciplinary proceedings in the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) in New Delhi, which quashed the charge memorandum on February 20 this year. Additionally, the Madras High Court discharged him from all charges brought by the CBI, which are still pending before the Additional District Judge for CBI cases in Coimbatore.
The screening committee has since recommended Pramod Kumar as “fit for promotion” after reviewing the situation. Based on these recommendations, the state home department has decided to include his name in a suitable panel for promotion.
