Who will become Nepal Police’s 30th IG? Will the chief of the law enforcement agency be a female this time around? If that happens, the country will get a first woman IG.  Five recently-promoted Additional Inspector Generals (AIGs) are in the fray for the top police job. They are: Basanta Bahadur Kunwar, Tek Prasad Rai, Deepak Thapa, Shyamalal Gyawali and Kiran Bajracharya.  On Wednesday, the incumbent Inspector General of Police Dhiraj Pratap Singh decorated the five senior officers with insignias at the police headquarters in Naxal, two days after their promotion on the basis of recommendations from the Promotion Recommendation Committee of the Ministry of Home Affairs. 

These promotions follow mandatory retirement of AIGs Bishwo Raj Pokharel, Mukunda Acharya, Arun BC, Rabindra Bahadur Dhanuk and Puja Singh upon completion of 30-year service. 

According to Nepal Police Regulations, a police officer has to mandatorily retire upon completing 30 years of service or upon turning 56.  If this rule holds, IGP Singh will retire on March 25, having completed 30 years of service. From among the promoted officers, Kunwar is posted in Dhanusha, Rai in Dang, Thapa in Makwanpur, Gyawali in Morang and Bajracharya at the police headquarters in Naxal.  The government can appoint IGPs from among the AIGs on five grounds, including seniority, efficiency and leadership qualities. Earlier, seniority was considered the top criterion for promotion. But a Supreme Court verdict on a petition challenging Singh’s appointment as IGP has set a precedent, giving the government the authority to decide on whom to promote from among the equals (AIGs). The senior officers now have an equal chance to land the top job after Ashok Singh, considered a strong contender for the position, resigned in the wake of a legal case over his citizenship. “Women in the police force can lead the entire team. They are as competitive as men,” says Hemant Malla, former DIG. Malla says it is difficult to predict who will be the next IG. “Things keep changing till the last moment.”  He says: “The appointment to the top job is made on the basis of rules, but then the rules keep changing.” A proper evaluation system should be in place, Malla argues, adding: The appointment should be fair and transparent.  Know the contenders Bajracharya is the only female candidate recommended as the top cop. She has investigated crimes against women and children, including human trafficking. She received the Prabal Janasewa Shree medal from the President in 2016 for her outstanding performance as District Police Chief of Bhaktapur. Rai has worked as Chief of the Anti-Human trafficking Bureau, Kunwar as spokesperson at Nepal Police, Thapa has worked in the field of change management, risk management, strategic planning and risk assessment, whereas Gyawali has previously led the Metropolitan Police Range, Kathmandu.