K'taka govt appoints MA Saleem as acting DG & IGP

Bengaluru, May 21 (IANS) Karnataka government has appointed senior IPS officer M. A. Saleem as the acting Director General (DG) and Inspector General of Police (IGP) on Wednesday.

Saleem is serving as the Director General of Police (DGP), Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Special Units and Economic Offences, Bengaluru.

A government order said that Saleem is placed in concurrent charge of the post of the Head of the Police Forces of Karnataka State from the afternoon of May 21 until further orders.

Alok Mohan, the Director General and Inspector General of Police, has retired from the service on May 21. Saleem is expected to be confirmed as the full-time state police chief after two months.

Saleem, a 1993 batch IPS officer, has served in various key positions across the state. He has served as the Superintendent of Police in Udupi and Hassan, and the Inspector General of Police of the Eastern Range.

Saleem has also served as the head of the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and as the DGP of the CID. He has also monitored the high-profile cases of the state.

His notable contributions include establishing helplines and support systems for women, children, and the elderly, the inception of the Garuda Police Patrol, the development of a Special Action Force in various districts, and significant advancements in traffic enforcement technology.

Apart from traffic management, investigation of criminal cases has been a passion for Saleem. He has supervised the following important Special Investigation Teams formed to investigate sensational and grave criminal cases.

He headed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed to investigate IMA fraud cases in which 74,000 people were cheated.

He also headed the Special Investigation Teams (SITs) to investigate multi-crore cryptocurrency hacking cases; Hassan multi-sexual harassment cases; misappropriation of Rs 94 crores at Karnataka Maharshi Valmiki Scheduled Tribes Development Corporation Limited; Police Sub-Inspector Recruitment Scam; and sexual harassment and extortion against an MLA.

Saleem was conferred with the President’s Police Medal for distinguished services in 2017, the President’s Police Medal for Meritorious Services in 2009, the National Award for e-Governance for exemplary usage of ICT by the Government of India, a commendation disk by the Bureau of Police Research and Development, Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India in 2021.

He was conferred with the prestigious IRTE Prince Michael International Road Safety Award for his immense contribution to promoting road safety.

--IANS

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