Ahead of polls, former Bihar top cop joins JD(U)
Former Director General of Police (DGP) of Bihar, Gupteshwar Pandey, on Sunday joined the ruling Janata Dal (United). The ex-top cop, who has lately been in the limelight, had quit the police post last week, triggering speculations about a political plunge. Notably, the move has come merely a month ahead of the crucial Assembly elections in the state. Here are more details on this.
He had met CM Kumar on Saturday as well
Pandey, who took voluntary retirement last week, had initially shied away from revealing his political plans. He also met Chief Minister Nitish Kumar at the party office on Saturday, but again dismissed the reports of him joining politics. However, in an interview with NDTV, he gave a hint, saying, "What's the harm if I join politics? Is it unconstitutional, unethical or illegal?"
"Was called by CM and asked to join"
"I was called by CM himself and asked to join. Whatever the party asks me to do, I will do. I don't understand politics. I am a simple person who has spent his time working for the downtrodden section of society," Pandey reportedly said today.
Pandey recently triggered controversy with his words
Pandey had last month triggered controversy after making an objectionable statement about actor Rhea Chakraborty. He had said that Rhea, who is the prime accused in the sensational death case of fellow actor Sushant Singh Rajput, did not have the "aukat" (stature) to comment on Bihar's Chief Minister, Nitish Kumar. He had also raised objections over Mumbai Police's earlier probe in Sushant's death case.
Pandey had quit police service in 2009 too
Interestingly, this is not the first time that Pandey, a 1987-batch IPS officer, has taken premature retirement to meet his political ambitions. Earlier, in March 2009 too, he had taken an early retirement as he wished to contest the then-Lok Sabha elections on a ticket from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). However, after he failed to get a ticket, Pandey resumed police service.
Bihar polls due to be held next month
This move has come shortly before the crucial Assembly polls in Bihar, where the JD(U) is contesting in coalition with the BJP. The elections will be held in three phases between late October and early November, and the results will be declared on November 10.
