J&K police chief SP Vaid removed

SRINAGAR: Jammu & Kashmir removed SP Vaid as its police chief late on Thursday in the wake of a series of kidnappings of kin of policemen by militants last week and their threat to derail upcoming urban local bodies and panchayat elections.

Vaid has been transferred as transport commissioner while1987 IPS officer Dilbag Singh, who was serving as director general of prisons, is the new police chief.

Vaid’s transfer is linked to the way police responded to more than a dozen kidnappings of policemen’s kin by militants, people familiar with the development said.


All these abductees were released once the police released father of top Hizb-ul-Mujahideen commander Riyaz Naikoo. This was perceived a major blow to the morale of armed forces, sources said.

The state, which is under governor’s rule, on Friday approached the Supreme Court to explain why the quick appointment was made without consulting Union Public Service Commission (UPSC). It said the state was fighting militancy for over three decades and cannot be left headless even for a minute.

“I’m happy that I got the opportunity to serve people of J&K…. Transfer is prerogative of the government and part of its procedure,” Vaid told ET.

Former CM Omar Abdullah said there was no hurry to replace Vaid.

“He should have been changed only when a permanent arrangement had been worked out. J&K police has enough problems without having to deal with confusion of leadership,” he wrote on Twitter.

After taking charge on Friday, Singh chaired a high level meeting of police officers.