A sharp administrative disagreement has emerged between the Madhya Pradesh Home Department and the state police headquarters over the retirement date of Director General of Police Kailash Makwana. The dispute began after the administrative branch of the police headquarters submitted a note sheet asserting that Makwana should retire on December 2, 2026, rather than November 30. The police headquarters based its calculation on the fact that Makwana officially assumed charge of the top post on December 2, 2024. The Home Department has rejected the proposal, stating that pushing the retirement date forward by two days is technically untenable.
Tenure to Be Counted from December 1
The Home Department maintains that the fixed two-year tenure of a state police chief begins on the effective date specified in the official appointment order rather than the date an officer takes charge. While Makwana took over office on December 2, 2024, the formal government order clearly stipulated that his appointment took effect from December 1, 2024. Consequently, authorities have stated that his tenure will conclude on November 30, 2026. Officials confirmed that while the note sheet is under review and a final decision will be taken soon, the appointment remains governed by the December 1 baseline.
Appointment Order Stems from UPSC Selection
The current assignment follows the Union Public Service Commission selection committee meeting held on November 21, 2024. Following the recommendations from that panel, the state government issued an official order on November 23, 2024, posting Makwana as the Director General of Police with effect from December 1, 2024. Special DG of Administration Adarsh Katiyar stated that a formal communication was sent to the Home Department to initiate the standard retirement order. However, the dispute over the exact concluding date has kept the administrative machinery engaged ahead of his scheduled superannuation.
Panel Equations and the Succession Race
Behind the procedural debate over two days lies significant administrative maneuvering regarding the selection of the next state police chief. Speculation within bureaucratic circles suggests that if Makwana receives a two-day extension to December 2, the most senior IPS officer currently featured in the consideration panel could fall out of the race. Such an exclusion would reshape the seniority ladder, allowing a Special DG-rank officer currently placed fourth to rise into the top three positions of the shortlist. The state government has already forwarded a panel of 12 IPS officers to Delhi, featuring Varun Kapoor, Pragya Richa, and Upendra Jain from the 1991 batch; Pankaj Srivastava, Adarsh Katiyar, and G. Akheto Sema from the 1992 batch; and Anil Kumar and Ravi Gupta among others from the 1993 batch.
