Andhra Police officer suspended for absence from duty

Hyderabad, June 19 (IANS) The Andhra Pradesh government Tuesday suspended senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Umesh Kumar, who is allegedly involved in a forgery case, for his unauthorized absence from duty.

Umesh Kumar is currently chairman of the Godavari Valley Development Authority and faces a forgery case in a court.

The government cracked the whip three days after a local court issued non-bailable warrant against the officer in the forgery case and he went into hiding after police reached his house to execute the warrant. The high court, however, Monday kept in abeyance the warrant till June 25.

Umesh Kumar, an IPS officer of 1977 batch, allegedly forged a letter in the name of a member of parliament to complain against another IPS officer, Dinesh Reddy.

The letter sent to the union home ministry contained allegations of land grabbing against Dinesh Reddy and his family members. A former journalist helped Umesh Kumar in forge the letter.

Umesh Kumar sent the letter last year to mar Dinesh Reddy's chances of being appointed as Director General of Police (DGP).

Interestingly, the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) Tuesday set aside Dinesh Reddy's appointment as the DGP on a petition filed by another IPS officer, P. Gautam Kumar.