IPS Amitabh Gupta who permitted Wadhawans to travel during lockdown, becomes Pune’s new police chief

Mumbai, Sept 18: In Maharashtra's major reshuffle, the state government transferred over 50 IPS officers, including the home department's principal secretary (special) Amitabh Gupta will be the new police commissioner of Pune. Gupta had granted written permission to the Wadhawans, who are under scanner in connection with the alleged PMC Bank Fraud case, for travel during a nationwide lockdown in April.

 

 

The Maharashtra government said that 41 officers have been allotted new postings, while the remaining officials have not yet been given new postings. One of the new postings included Amitabh Gupta. Earlier, the principal secretary to the state home department.

 

During lockdown imposed due to the COVID-19 outbreak, he had allowed businessmen brothers Kapil and Dheeraj Wadhawan, whom he described as “family friends”, to travel to their farmhouse in Mahabaleshwar from a guest house in Khandala. They were under the radar of the alleged Yes Bank and PMC Fraud Case.

 

Though the state government sent him on compulsory leave following uproar over the travel permit and ordered a probe in the matter, he resumed duty after a few days. Gupta is a 1992-batch IPS officer.

 

On the other hand, Vineet Agrawal, a 1994 IPS officer, has been the newly appointed home department's principal secretary (special). He was earlier the ADGP at Maharashtra State Security Corporation (MSSC) in Mumbai.