IPS officer who was BJP member made ADG in Yogi's town

A senior Uttar Pradesh IPS officer, who was reportedly a BJP member during his leave of absence, was made the additional director general (ADG) of police, Gorakhpur zone, by the state government.

Gorakhpur is the home town of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.

According to sources, the IPS officer, Dawa Sherpa, had applied for voluntary retirement (VRS) - which was rejected - in 2008 and then went on a leave of absence.

He shifted to Darjeeling, his home town, and reportedly joined the BJP.

Sherpa also sought a ticket from the saffron party for the Darjeeling seat in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls. He, however, failed to secure the nomination and later left the BJP and joined the Gorkhaland movement for a separate state.

Sherpa's application for VRS had been rejected on the ground that he had not completed 20 years of service.

Sources said that Sherpa decided to return to the police service in 2012 and was promoted to DIG rank in 2013.

His appointment as ADG has received flak from Opposition parties.

Samajwadi Party leaders here said the state government was appointing officers who held the same ideology as them in top posts, which they said was "dangerous" and against the spirit of the Constitution. The Congress criticised Sherpa's appointment as well.

A couple of days back, senior IPS officer Surya Kumar Shukla had triggered a controversy after he was caught taking a pledge to build the Ram Temple at Ayodhya on tape.