By IANS,
Ranchi : Jharkhand’s senior police officer Amitabh Chaudhary is in the news again for all the wrong reasons – he has been staying away from office for the last six months without officially seeking leave.
Chaudhary, who belongs to the Indian Police Service (IPS) and was posted as Inspector General in the Crime Investigation Department (CID), had applied for leave some months ago but this was not formally approved.
“He had moved a long leave petition to the home department. The petition has been forwarded to the Chief Minister’s Office,” an official of the home department said.
This apart, an official said Chaudhary should have forwarded a copy of his leave application to his immediate superior, Additional Director General of Police of (CID) G.S. Rath.
“Chaudhary never moved his leave petition before me,” Rath said.
Rath has twice written to the state government asking it to post an IG rank officer to discharge Chaudhary’s responsibilities but in vain.
In the midst of all this, Chaudhary is maintaining a pretty high profile.
He is seen at all the functions of Jharkhand Cricket Association. Last month, he was seated on the dais with Chief Minister Shibu Soren at a function in Ranchi.
Chaudhary had first hit the headlines in 2005 when he won an election against then home minister Sudesh Mahto to become the president of the Jharkhand Cricket Association.
In February, he was again in the news for seeking the state government’s permission for prosecuting then chief secretary P.P. Sharma in a corruption case. Later, it also transpired that he had leaked a copy of the letter to the media.
According to sources, Chaudhary is making efforts to fight the Lok Sabha elections due next year from Jamshedpur on a Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) ticket.