Thaindian News

Chandigarh, Sep 30 (IANS) Anil Kaushik, a 1975-batch Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, Friday took over as the Director General of Police (DGP) in Punjab.

Kaushik replaces Paramjit Singh Gill who retired from service Friday.

The Punjab government had Thursday announced that Gill would be appointed as advisor-home to the state government.

Gill formally handed over charge to Kaushik at a ceremony at the Punjab Police headquarters here in the presence of the police top brass.

Addressing senior officers, Kaushik asked them to be more accessible and responsive to the common people.

The opposition Congress slammed the Parkash Singh Badal government for appointing Gill as advisor-home immediately after his retirement.

Former chief minister and Punjab Congress President Amarinder Singh said: “This is the first time in history that a home minister has appointed a proxy for himself and outsourced his job.”

Deputy chief minister Sukhbir Singh Badal is also the state’s home minister.

Gill has been in controversy of late after the opposition complained to the Election Commission that he was misusing his position as DGP to prepare ground to contest assembly polls from Moga next year.

Gill, a Jammu and Kashmir cadre IPS officer, was handpicked by the Badal regime and brought on inter-state deputation in 2007. He was later made Punjab DGP.