When D K Shivakumar Called Next CBI Chief Praveen Sood A ‘Nalayak’

On Sunday, the government of India appointed Praveen Sood as the next chief or director of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

Sood is a Karnataka cadre IPS officer from the batch of 1986. He is currently the Director General of Police, Karnataka. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet (ACC) approved his name based on the recommendation of a panel comprising the Prime Minister, Chief Justice of India and Leader of Opposition.

This is an important development as Karnataka has voted for the Congress. In March this year, Congress president D K Shivakumar had called Sood a 'nayalak' (useless). He had alleged that Sood had booked more than 25 cases against the Congress while protecting the BJP. He had also said that there should be a case filed against Sood immediately and he should be arrested. The Election Commission should remove him. Let our government come, we will act against him, Shivakumar had said.

Sood is the third IPS officer from Karnataka to become the CBI director after Joginder Singh and D R Karthikeyan.

Sood hails from Himachal Pradesh and did his graduation from IIT-Delhi. He joined the IPS at the age of 22 in 1986. He began his career in 1989 as the assistant SP of Mysuru. He later went on to become the SP of Ballari and Raichur before he was transferred to Bengaluru.

He focused on transforming haphazard and unregulated traffic situation in Mysore city through awareness campaigns, mechanical and engineering improvements and better enforcement. He was also instrumental in arrest of Pakistan origin terrorists during his stint in Mysore, Sood's blog says.