The other three DG rank officers are Ravi Gupta — who took over from suspended top cop Anjani Kumar — CV Anand, and Rajeev Ratan.
Jitender IPS. (Facebook)
With the change in government after 10 years that saw K Chandrashekar Rao-led BRS in power since Telangana’s formation, a new Cabinet under the Congress is expected in a few days.
As winds of political change pass through Telangana, top government officials are also vying for key positions even as Congress is deciding on its Cabinet composition.
Highly placed sources within the Police department and the Congress party told South First that Principal Secretary, Home Department, Jitender, is the top contender, along with three other Director General of Police (DGP)-rank officers, for the post of the top cop in Telangana.
Jitender, an IPS officer of the 1992 batch, was posted as home secretary in December 2022. He also holds additional charge of DG of Prisons and Correctional Services.
The other three DG rank officers are Ravi Gupta, who replaced DGP Anjani Kumar following his suspension for violation of the election code on 3 December, transferred Hyderabad Commissioner CV Anand, and Rajeev Ratan, Managing Director of the Police Housing Corporation.
DGP Ravi Gupta, from the 1990 batch, took charge as the Director-General of Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) in December 2022 and held additional charge of Director-General (Vigilance and Enforcement).
He was appointed as DGP with additional charge on 3 December, after the incumbent DGP Anjani Kumar was suspended by the Election Commission of India for meeting Revanth Reddy, chief of Congress, while the counting was still in progress.
The suspension was on the grounds of violating the Model Code of Conduct (MCC).
Hyderabad CP CV Anand, a 1991 batch officer named Commissioner of Hyderabad in December 2021, was transferred by the ECI soon after the MCC came into effect. He is reportedly seen as having close links with the BRS and was also asked not to be given any election-related duty by the ECI.
In August 2023, Rajeev Ratan, a 1991 batch IPS officer, along with CV Anand and Jitender, was promoted to the rank of DGP by the state government. He was posted as the MD of the Police Housing Corporation in January 2023.
However, among all, South First was told by the sources that it is Jitender, Principal Secretary for Home, who is considered a non-controversial and upright police officer who may align well with the new government.
