Hour before retirement, TN DGP Rajendran gets top post

Rajendran was supposed to retire on Friday, but now, he will continue to hold office until June 2019.

Chennai, July 1: Incumbent Director General of Police (Intelligence) T K Rajendran has been named head of the State police force by the Tamil Nadu government.

Rajendran, holding additional charge as DGP (law and order) was due to retire on June 30 and the Government Order appointing him to the top post came on Friday night.

Police sources told The Hindu that the Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami signed the file recommending TK Rajendran for the top post, and sent it to the Governor.

The appointment came around 11.30pm. Rajendran was supposed to retire on Friday, but now, he will continue to hold office until June 2019. It is reported that the Governor of Tamil Nadu Vidyasagar Rao has raised questions about the extension of tenure of TK Rajendran.

This comes two days after DMK working president MK Stalin had raised the issue of gutka scam in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, and named former city police commissioner George, DGP TK Rajendran and Health Minister Vijayabhaskar for allegedly allowing sales of gutka products in the state.

On July 8 in 2016, raids were conducted at the godown, offices and residences of a pan masala and gutka manufacturer in Tamil Nadu, who was facing charges of evading tax to the tune of Rs 250 crore. Seized during the raid was a diary containing names of those who were believed to have been paid off by the gutka manufacturers, which allegedly included the names of the Health Minister and other top officials including S George and TK Rajendran.

After former DGPs K. Ramanujam and Ashok Kumar, Rajendran would be the third senior IPS officer in the State to get the benefit of the Supreme Court order in the Prakash Singh case. The panel of DGPs approved by the UPSC included Archana Ramasundaram (1980 batch), K.P. Maghendran (1984 batch) and Mr. Rajendran.

Oneindia News (With agency inputs)