Mangaluru: IGP Harishekaran transferred; Hemant Nimbalkar to replace him

Mangalore Today News Network

Mangaluru, Aug 07, 2017 : In an abrupt move, P. Harishekaran, the Inspector General of Police of Western Range has been transferred by the state government. M. Hemant Nimbalkar has been appointed in his place.

 

P. Harishekaran had taken charge as IGP Western Range on 6 January this year and his abrupt transfer has surprised many. Western Range covers four revenue districts including Dakshina Kannada, Uttara Kannada, Chikmaglur, and Udupi.

During the prolonged communal disturbance at Kalladka during last two months, he had played a hands-on role in restoring normalcy. His transfer has come as a surprise to many, though some rumours were being heard of late.

His transfer is part of a major shakeup of police top brass announced by Karnataka State Government today involving replacement of 5 senior IPS officers.

The new appointee M. Hemant Nimbalkar is a 1998 batch IPS officer and the transfer order describes him as ‘waiting’ for posting and that he is being ‘posted until further orders’ as IGP Western Range. Hence it is not clear whether his posting is an interim measure. He runs an active Twitter account.

With this transfer the entire top rank of both Mangauru City Police and Dakshina Kannada District police has witnessed a complete overhaul.  It is speculated that the state government is gearing itself for the forthcoming state assembly election when it will be seeking a new mandate.


Hemant Nimbalkar was one of the five IPS officers to be raided by Lok Ayukta in 2009 during the regime of Justice Santosh Hegde and the present Director General of Police R. K. Dutta. He had been accused of possessing disproportionate assets to the tune of Rs 250 crore during this incident when he was serving as a police superintendent.

This incident had caused a shock in government circles. However, the Lokayukta police could not prove the charges, leading Nimbalkar to openly accuse both Dutta and Justice Hegde of trying to gain cheap publicity. He is said to have also sued the Lokayukta.