State anti-terror squad has no IG,SSP

The organisation has been without an IG for over three years now while the post of SSP is vacant since January. There is a requirement of five additional SPs (ASPs) against which only one is available. Similarly,against the requirement of nine deputy SPs,only five are filled.

The previous Mayawati government had set up the ATS after serial blasts in the district courts of Lucknow,Faizabad and Varanasi in November 2007. DIG Rajeev Krishna,SSP Rajeev Sabharwal and ASPs Umesh Kumar Singh,H N Singh and Lalit Kumar Singh,besides some Deputy SPs,were posted with the ATS. The then Lucknow zone IG A K Jain was given charge of the ATS.

Later,the government strengthened the ATS after Indian Mujahideen (IM) surfaced as a new terror outfit in 2008 and it was found that many of its operatives belonged to Azamgarh.

The government created two posts of IGs,two of DIGs and four of SSPs and divided the state into three zones for more effective anti-terror operations,namely east,central and west. However,the arrangement could sustain for only about eight months because of the government’s failure to curb infighting among the officials. Both IGs and all four SSPs were removed,while one DIG became IG. No replacements were posted.

At present,Rajeev Sabharwal,who was promoted to DIG in 2009,is heading the UP ATS and Rajesh Kumar Pandey is the only ASP posted with the headquarters. The posts of ASPs at Noida and Varanasi are lying vacant for over two years. All three zones have ceased to exist in the absence of senior officers.

Sources also said that Deputy SPs Anurag Darshan and Rajeev Mishra,posted with Varanasi and Noida,respectively,and Ravindra Kumar Singh in Lucknow are the only officials available to lead the teams in operations. Other Deputy SPs Rajesh Sahni and Rajesh Kumar Srivastava look after the assignments at the Lucknow headquarters,the sources added.

When enquired about the shortage of officials in ATS,ADG (Law & Order) Jagmohan Yadav,who also heads the squad,said,“We are looking for officials eligible for the ATS postings.”