THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The standoff between State Police Chief T P Senkumar and ADGP (Headquarters) Tomin J Thachankary has taken an ugly turn. Senkumar has lashed out at Thachankary saying 12 confidential files in the ‘T’ Branch against Thachankary were missing and that the latter had removed them using his power. However, Thachankary has retorted saying the ‘T’ Branch had some files against Senkumar as well as many other top police officials.
Senkumar responded to the issue to ‘Express’ after Thachankary reportedly submitted a confidential report to Home Secretary Subrata Biswas stating the DGP had ulterior motives in summoning all secret files from T Branch.
“How can an ADGP interfere in the job of a DGP? It is the DGP’s prerogative to summon files from any section. What power does the ADGP have against me? It is learnt 12 files having adverse remarks against Thachankary are missing. He must have removed the files when I was about to verify them,” Senkumar said.
He said he was unaware of any confidential report filed by Thachankary against him.
When ‘Express’ contacted Thachankary, he denied having removed files from T Branch. “Not only against me, there were reports in T Branch against the DGP and many top police officers. No one can remove the files from a confidential section. It is a baseless allegation,” Thachankary said.
On reassuming office as State Police Chief on May 7, Senkumar had clarified the ‘T Branch, the confidential section in the police HQ, was under his direct control. He had also summoned all files of a top secret nature. Reportedly, Thachankary has said in his report to the Home Secretary Senkumar’s decision to summon the files was strange. The move, the ADGP has reportedly suggested, could be part of a strategy by Senkumar to use them to counter the government legally after his retirement on June 30. However, the government is yet to respond to the report.
With just two weeks left for Senkumar, resentment is brewing among top officers at the police headquarters against various decisions taken by the DGP. The government and Senkumar have been at loggerheads even since he was reinstated as State Police Chief on May 7.
Never tried to manhandle Thachankary, says Senkumar
DGP T P Senkumar on Wednesday submitted a report to Home Secretary Subrata Biswas saying he had never tried to manhandle Thachankary and he had only summoned him for convening a meeting with all employees of police headquarters without his knowledge. In the report, Senkumar said Thachankary was only warned of his alleged action. On Tuesday, Chief Secretary Nalini Netto sought an explanation from Senkumar in a week on Thachankary’s complaint that he was threatened and roughed up by the DGP in a one-to-one meeting held last month.