LUCKNOW: In a major development, Uttar Pradesh government shunted state Director General of Police (DGP) Mukul Goel on Wednesday evening on charges of dereliction of duty, lack of interest in official work and departmental duties along with general indolence.
Goel, who was appointed UP DGP in June 2021, has been shifted to Civil Defence department as DG.
As per the official sources, the decision to remove Goel was taken at the highest level by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath himself after the DGP allegedly disobeyed some of the recent government orders and was proving to be ineffective on law and order front.
Moreover, the situation against Goel precipitated last month when he was conspicuous by his absence in a key law and order review meeting chaired by the CM himself. As a consequence of which the CM had been keeping unhappy with the DGP.
Highly-placed official sources also claimed that Goel had not been holding the team meetings and was skipping important departmental presentations especially those of the home department at the government level.
Significantly, Goel has been in news earlier also for wrong reasons. He has been among those IPS officers who were suspended during the previous regime of Mayawati (2007-2012) for alleged irregularities in police recruitment. However, they were reinstated later as the case was closed by the government.
Moreover, Goel was holding the post of Additional Director General (Law and Order) in 2013 when communal riots had broken out in Muzaffarnagar and neighbouring districts claiming about 67 lives and rendering thousands homeless.
While ADG (law and order) Prashant Kumar has been given the charge of UP DGP till the new appointment is made by the government, senior IPS officers, including Dr Rajendra Pal Singh, GL Meena -- both of 1987 batch, RK Vishwakarma and DS Chauhan of 1988 batch might be the front runners in the race to the post of UP DGP.
Goel, a resident of Muzaffarnagar, is an engineering pass out of IIT Delhi. He has held the posts of Azamgarh SP and SSP of Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Saharanpur and Meerut. Goel has also been the DIG of Kanpur, Agra and Bareilly. Apart from this, Goel has also been IG in ITBP, and BSF. He has also been ADG Railway in UP, CB-CID.
As per the sources, Goel, had got the empanelment for central deputation recently and may proceed on it shortly.