Yog Raj Sharma
The North News
Shimla, May 24
The simmering conflict within Himachal Pradesh’s police force escalated on Saturday as Sanjeev Kumar Gandhi, the Superintendent of Police (SP) in Shimla, accused Director General of Police (DGP) Atul Verma of filing a false affidavit and interfering in the investigation into the death of Chief Engineer Vimal Negi. The war of words broke just a day after the Himachal Pradesh High Court transferred the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), expressing dissatisfaction with the state police’s handling of the probe.
In an unusually public display of discord at the top of a state police force, Gandhi alleged during a press briefing in Shimla that the DGP attempted to manipulate evidence, interfered in the functioning of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), and damaged the integrity of the police institution. He claimed a confidential CID report was leaked from the DGP’s office, accusing his private staff of being involved in its theft.
“This is not merely a dispute between two officers; it reflects a deeper systemic failure—one that involves the state machinery, accountability, and institutional integrity,” Gandhi said, adding that he had kept both the state government and the Advocate General informed of his concerns over time. “Yet no action was taken.”
He further alleged that the DGP had tried to push for favoured officers to lead the CID inquiry, submitted misleading affidavits to the court, and attempted to frame officials in fabricated cases involving false IED claims with alleged NSG links.
The DGP, in a report earlier submitted to the High Court, had painted a sharply different picture. He accused Gandhi—who has been in charge in Shimla for over two years—of obstructing the Negi investigation at various stages, including delaying key forensic reports and ignoring instructions from the Deputy Inspector General (DIG), Southern Range. The report mentioned Gandhi’s failure to cooperate with officials, including the Director of the State Forensic Science Laboratory.
The DGP further stated in his report that a pen drive recovered during the investigation contained documents pertaining to the Pekhubella infrastructure project in Una district. Although the presentation appeared to be a routine departmental file, investigators recommended a detailed review by subject matter experts to determine its significance.
