Yogi's Police Is Delivering — But How Long Can Uttar Pradesh Rely On Acting DGPs?

If the Yogi Adityanath administration were to boast about its eight-year tenure, the improved law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh (UP) would top the list.

Despite UP still recording the highest crime rate, many locals report a tangible improvement in law and order. They feel safer stepping out after 9 pm and have greater trust in the police. The crime rate figure is attributed to the fact that the police is registering more reports now.

The rising conviction rate in criminal cases, the crackdown on mafia networks, and the fear of police encounters among criminals suggests that UP Police has been successful in at least these aspects.

Despite these achievements, the leadership instability of the UP Police puts a question mark on the Yogi government's hallmark.

On 1 June, Rajeev Krishna took over as the acting Director General of Police (DGP) of UP as former acting DGP Prashant Kumar superannuated on 31 May.

Critics and opponents of Yogi Adityanath are quick to point out though that Krishna is the fifth DGP of UP to be appointed in an acting capacity in the last three years.

From Samajwadi Party's (SP) national president Akhilesh Yadav to UP Congress president Ajay Rai, Yogi's rivals are claiming that the appointments of acting DGPs are detrimental to the law and order of UP.

Yadav said, "Why should the people of Uttar Pradesh bear the brunt of a law-and-order mechanism which has been in shambles only because Lucknow and Delhi do not have good (political) relations."

He added that when the state and the centre are unable to strike a consensus and shortlist a DGP, then one must "not expect any wonders at the crime and law and order front" from the Yogi government.

Similarly, Rai said, "Why is the acting DGP being nominated, why can't you appoint a permanent DGP? There is zero law and order in the state... When the police chief himself is on acting post, that means the whole police force is on acting posts."

How an acting DGP acts differently

To understand how the appointment of an acting DGP affects the police organisation and working, Swarajya spoke to several retired and incumbent police officers.

"The organisational structure of the police force is not affected by whether the DGP is in an acting capacity or a permanent one. This is because even an acting DGP enjoys all the powers of a regular DGP," a retired Indian Police Services (IPS) officer said.

The former IPS officer, who retired as Inspector General (IG) in UP, further explained that an acting DGP receives all the perks, including equivalent pay, as a regular DGP.

The only difference, he said, is that an acting DGP “becomes a yes-man of the government.”

Similar differences between an acting DGP and a regular one were highlighted by another retired IPS officer of the 1977 batch, Suvrat Tripathi, a former DGP of UP.

"An acting DGP does not have the power of a full-time DGP, those powers are with the state. An acting DGP takes care of the routine works, but for decisive actions, he needs the consent of the state," the former DGP explained.

"The acting DGPs are more disciplined in taking orders from the state because they want to show their worth. A permanent DGP would, instead, counter or cross-question the orders received before executing them," he added.

This means that with an acting DGP in place, the state's law and order apparatus becomes entirely dependent on the Chief Minister (CM), while the acting DGP plays more of an operational role than a directorial one.

"The CM is not questioned by an acting DGP. If the CM's orders are right, the law and order situation will be good and if they are wrong, the situation will be bad. A permanent DGP also gives his own opinion," Tripathi said.

However, Tripathi acknowledged that under acting DGPs, the state achieved better results in tackling entrenched mafias like Mukhtar Ansari and Atiq Ahmed, as this was a key focus of UP CM Yogi Adityanath.

Apart from this difference, the existence of an acting DGP does not affect the police organisation, as confirmed by officers working at various levels, from constables to inspectors.

"We are not affected by the appointment of an acting DGP. We only comply with the orders we get," Sub-Inspector (SI) Paramhans, posted in Kushinagar, told Swarajya, while declining to comment on why a regular DGP is not being appointed.

Similar statements were echoed by an Inspector from Gautam Buddha Nagar and another SI, Madhupriya Yadav, posted in Maharajganj, who said that there is no confusion regarding hierarchy, even with an acting DGP.

However, senior officers were reluctant to comment on the matter. The recently retired former DGP Prashant Kumar said, "It is a government decision... would not like to comment."

Why the appointment of acting DGPs is an issue

The simplest answer is political motivations.

The Opposition in Uttar Pradesh cites successive appointments of acting DGPs in UP as proof of friction between Lucknow and New Delhi, as also proof of procedural anomalies under Yogi Adityanath.

Indeed, one cause of concern is that the appointment of an acting DGP undermines the constitutional and legal framework established by the Supreme Court for the appointment of regular state DGPs.

As per this framework, the state sends a list of at least five eligible officers to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). Of them, three are shortlisted by the UPSC with the help of the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA).

The list of the three shortlisted candidates is sent back to the state and the state is free to appoint any one of them as the DGP.

To understand why this framework has not been functional in the case of UP, we have to go back to 2022 when Yogi Adityanath returned to power for the second consecutive term.

The last regular DGP of UP, Mukul Goel was removed from the position of DGP in May 2022 over allegations of inaction and lack of interest in work, much before his superannuation due in February 2024.

"After this, the UP government tried to follow the set procedure of appointment of the next DGP and sent the list to UPSC. But in response, instead of sending back the list of shortlisted candidates, the MHA questioned the UP government over the removal of Mukul Goel," a retired IG said.

Mukul Goel was approved by UPSC and MHA, but when the UP government removed him only after 10 months of his service as DGP, the UP government was required to give clarification to the Centre, an MHA insider said.

"However, the UP government decided not to respond to the Centre's query. Till today, the state has not responded to MHA's letter and is continuing with acting DGPs, which has become a tradition now," the retired IG said.

Explaining this tussle between Centre and state, a computer operator working in UP Police in Prayagraj said, "It's a tussle between (Union Home Minister) Amit Shah and Yogi. If the DGP is centre-appointed, he will listen more to Shah, which Yogi does not want."

On the condition of anonymity, he explained the politics behind it, "Shah and Yogi are in a race to succeed Modi and hence, want to show their power over the police force. Anyways, it's not like only BJP is appointing acting DGPs, Samajwadi Party also did so."

The appointment of an acting DGP is easier for the state since it does not involve the Centre. "The CM can choose anyone from the rank of Director General (DG) for the appointment of the DGP," the retired IPS officer added.

However, to bring more transparency and accountability in the appointment of DGPs, the Yogi government approved the Director General of Police, Uttar Pradesh Selection and Appointment Rules 2024 in November 2024.

The rules were cleared after the Supreme Court issued notices to eight states including UP for appointing acting DGPs in October 2024. The rules are claimed to be in compliance with the 2006 framework established by the top court.

As per the new rules, a selection committee led by a retired judge of the High Court, and comprising the UP Chief Secretary, a nominee of the UPSC, the chairperson or nominee of the UP Public Service Commission (UPPSC), the Additional Chief Secretary/Principal Secretary, a representative of the Home Department, and a retired DGP, would appoint a DGP.

Although the new rules dilute the centre's say in the DGP appointment, they set certain criteria like the appointed DGP should at least have a tenure of six months left before retirement and should be appointed for at least two years, to reduce arbitrariness in the appointment.

However, a selection committee under these rules is yet to be formed, and Rajeev Krishna has been appointed as acting DGP without any such committee, with the UP CM's orders.

It was believed that the former UP DGP Prashant Kumar, who retired recently, would be the first regular DGP to be appointed under these rules. But till these rules were implemented, there were less than six months left in his retirement, making him ineligible for the post. Thus, the use of these rules was delayed.

Several reports suggest that the UP government was also seeking an extension for Prashant Kumar, but again, due to non-agreement between the Centre and the state, the former DGP was not granted an extension and had to retire.

Then, it was expected that after Kumar's retirement, the next DGP would be appointed under these rules. Reportedly, there were 11 officers in the race, including a woman officer, giving hope that UP might have its first-ever female police chief.

However, it is believed that many officers on the list were senior to Rajeev Krishna and if the rules had been followed, Krishna might have missed out. Hence, to appoint him as the UP DGP, as the CM prefers him, the rules were again bypassed.

Nonetheless, there's a possibility that by March 2026, when several officers senior to Krishna would have retired, Krishna might be appointed as a regular DGP under these rules. Till then, UP will have to work under another acting DGP.

How the system has worked with acting DGPs

After the removal of Mukul Goel from the DGP post almost two years before his superannuation, all four acting DGPs succeeding him worked as DGPs till their retirements, showing no abrupt leadership change.

However, it can be argued that their short tenures—for instance, Raj Kumar Vishwakarma served as DGP only for two months—did not give them enough avenues for structural reforms.

Nonetheless, the works done under acting DGPs have been quite effective in reducing crime in the state.

After Mukul Goel, Devendra Singh Chauhan took over as UP Police chief. Chauhan's 10-month-long tenure was marked by intensive actions against the Atiq Ahmed and Mukhtar Ansari gangs. Properties worth over Rs 1,800 crore of the mafia and their aides were seized or demolished.

After him, Vishwakarma's short tenure witnessed the killings of Atiq Ahmed's son Asad and his associate in an encounter. A few days later, Atiq and his brother Ashraf were also killed in police custody in Prayagraj. Although the incident put a question mark on the police's capabilities, common people were not complaining about these events.

When Vijay Kumar took over as the UP Police chief for eight months, his focus was on police infrastructure and tech upgrades. Hundreds of police stations were either built or modernised, and thousands of cybercrime police stations and cells were strengthened.

With the longest term of 16 months among acting DGPs, Prashant Kumar's tenure stands out for the continued crackdown on organised crime, including on gangs led by criminals such as Vijay Mishra, Baddo, Sundar Bhati, Sunil Rathi, Dhruv Singh, and Anupam Dubey.

Apart from this, he tried to make the police force more women-friendly with the deployment of 5,000 women constables for rapid response and patrolling in public spaces and making Pink Booths more responsive.

However, his prime focus was on improving conviction rates and police modernisation by expanding digital surveillance and strengthening cybercrime units.

That said, the past record of the four former acting DGPs puts high hopes on the newly appointed acting DGP Rajeev Krishna, who was serving as the chairman of the UP Police Recruitment and Promotion Board (UPPRPB).

Can Rajeev Krishna do it?

"He (Krishna) is an outstanding officer. He is a leader in true words. He takes everyone together and listens to everyone's opinions. He works very systematically," a retired IPS officer, who worked with Krishna in UPPRPB, told Swarajya.

"Among the officers available in UP, he is the best one because he has vast experience. Moreover, his appointment sends a message that good work will be rewarded as he concluded a prestigious job of recruitment of 60,000 police personnel," the retired IPS officer added.

Notably, Krishna took over as Chairman of UPPRPB in March 2024 after the February 2024 UP police constable recruitment examination was cancelled over allegations of a question paper leak and then-Chairman Renuka Mishra was replaced.

CM Adityanath had promised that the re-examination would be conducted within six months. The task had to be accomplished by Krishna, who lost close to two months to the enforcement of the Model Code of Conduct for the 2024 Lok Sabha election.

Despite these difficulties, Krishna succeeded in conducting the constable recruitment exam for over 40 lakh applicants in August 2024 without any discrepancies. The recruitment process was completed in March 2025 with the selection of over 60,000 police personnel.

Now, Krishna has been picked for the top job.

The 1991-batch IPS officer started gaining recognition since the early 2000s for dealing with kidnapping gangs when he was the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) in Agra.

Before becoming the Chairman of UPPRPB, Krishna was the DG of vigilance. Earlier, he also served as the Additional Director General (ADG) of Lucknow and Agra Zones. He is considered to be among the officers who enjoy the confidence of CM Adityanath.

In his maiden press conference as UP DGP, Krishna emphasised "zero tolerance" for crime and criminals, women’s empowerment and protection, and police welfare and morale boost.

He prioritised swift and sensitive public grievance redressal, uncompromising law and order, and continuous training and skill enhancement of police personnel.

Stressing the use of technology, he said that cybercrime combat would be enforced with cutting-edge technology, smart policing would be enforced with Artificial Intelligence, and police services would be made efficient with tech accessibility.

Police versus politics

Time will tell how Krishna's tenure turns out to be for UP, but for now, the questions on Yogi's DGP appointment process remain unanswered.

Since law and order is a political issue in UP, it is natural for CM Yogi to keep a firm grip on the police organisation, which explains the subsequent appointments of acting DGPs.

In practical terms, the arrangement of acting DGPs is working efficiently under CM Adityanath. But when a system is not institutionalised, and is instead dependent on an individual, it is naturally vulnerable to be used arbitrarily by the individuals in charge. It is Yogi today. It might be someone else in the future.

Hence, it is necessary for the Yogi government to go back to the DGP appointment framework established by the Supreme Court in 2006 or get judicial approval for the new appointment process that it has drafted and work accordingly.

To go back to the 2006 framework, the UP government would need to resolve the difference with the Centre. This resolution would also help quiten the buzz of a rift between CM Yogi and the Modi-Shah duo, and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would appear more united going into the 2027 Assembly elections.

Overall, the current arrangement serves the purpose for now, but to ensure it remains effective beyond political cycles, the state must re-align with institutional norms.