Tamil Nadu DGP Sandeep Rai Rathore.
The appointment of a regular Director General of Police and Head of the Police Force in the Tamil Nadu police is set to be delayed further.
The State government has written to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) requesting postponement of the Empanelment Committee Meeting (ECM) which was scheduled in Delhi on May 11, 2026.
In a communication sent to the UPSC, the State said the presence of the Chief Secretary and the Home Secretary in the State was absolutely essential in the next few days.
Apparently referring to the ongoing political developments and stalemate in the formation of a new government, a top official requested the UPSC to postpone the meeting to some other date, preferably in the last week of May.
The present DGP/HoPF Sandeep Rai Rathore, who was appointed by the Election Commission of India replacing G. Venkatraman who was in-charge of the post, would continue to head the force till a UPSC-empanelled chief of police is appointed as per the Supreme Court guidelines in the Prakash Singh case, police sources said on Thursday.
The ECM convened by the UPSC is led by its chairman, the Union Home Secretary, the DGP of one of the Central Armed Paramilitary Forces (not belonging to the Tamil Nadu cadre), the Chief Secretary and Home Secretary of the State concerned.
This is the third time that the ECM is being postponed. First it was convened on March 20, 2026, and was deferred due to administrative reasons and then on April 23, 2026, since it was polling day for the Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu.
The DGP-rank officers who would be considered for empanelment in the order of seniority are Seema Agrawal, Rajeev Kumar and Sandeep Rai Rathore followed by K. Vannia Perumal, Mahesh Kumar Aggarwal, G. Venkatraman and others. Ms Agrawal is due to retire from service next month, the sources said.
Published – May 08, 2026 12:32 am IST
