Jaisalmer Superintendent of Police Pankaj Choudhary
As the demand for the reinstatement of the young Indian Administrative Service officer Durga Shakti Nagpal grows, it seems another honest officer has been shunted out for doing his job.
Pankaj Choudhary, Superintendent of Police in Rajasthan's Jaisalmer district, has been transferred to a non-field posting by the Ashok Gehlot government, allegedly because he reopened the history sheet against Gazi Fakir, father of Congress MLA Saleh Mohammad.
80-year-old Mr Gazi had a history sheet against him since 1965 for smuggling, land grabbing and other activities. The history sheet curiously went missing in 1984.
A history sheet maintained by the police is a list of cases of serious crimes committed by a habitual offender over a period of time.
Jaisalmer residents allege that the SP has been transferred due to pressure from Gazi Fakir's family. Gazi's son Saleh Mohammad is an MLA while another son Abdullah Fakir is a Zila Pramukh (District Head).
Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot defended the transfer, saying Choudhary is among the 49 IPS officers who have been transferred as part of an administrative routine. "The media is making an issue out of a non-issue," he said.
But the fact that the IPS officer had only spent five months in Jaisalmer has raised questions on the government's motive behind the transfer.