THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: DGP Ravada A Chandrasekhar, who is on central deputation, has been selected as the new State Police Chief.
An officer of the 1991 IPS batch, he was a special director with the Intelligence Bureau (IB) and was offered the post of Secretary (Security) in the Cabinet Secretariat from August. However, Ravada formally and through informal channels informed the state government that he was willing to return to the state.
Ravada had been on a central deputation for the past 11 years. He was picked from the shortlist of three IPS officers that the UPSC had forwarded to the state government. The appointment was ratified by the state cabinet that met here on Monday.
Road Safety Commissioner Nitin Agarwal, Ravada and Fire and Rescue Services Director General Yogesh Gupta were the three officers who featured in the UPSC shortlist. As the government had a frayed equation with Yogesh, whose certain decisions as Vigilance Director had ruffled feathers of some CPM leaders, he was overlooked and the contest was between Nitin and Ravada.
Sources said Nitin, who was repatriated from BSF, where he was working as Director General, to the state, did not get favourable reviews from the senior IPS officers. Ravada also had some hurdles to face. Being involved in the Koothuparamba firing in which several CPM workers had lost their lives, the CPM leadership's response regarding his appointment was also crucial. Also his long stint with the Intelligence Bureau was also viewed sceptically as some held it as a testament of his proximity to the BJP leadership. Meanwhile, Ravada had called on CM Pinarayi Vijayan where he reportedly expressed his intent to return to the state. The CPM leadership also took a stand that baggage from the past should not be an issue while picking up the new police chief. Some of the former state police chiefs also conveyed to the CPM that Ravada was the best choice.