THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The government issued an order promoting Vigilance Chief Yogesh Gupta to the rank of DGP. It is with a pay scale of 205400- 224400. Yogesh, a 1993 batch officer, has service till April 2030. He is a native of Mumbai.

Yogesh Gupta has been promoted in the vacancy left by former vigilance chief TK Vinod Kumar who took voluntary retirement. He has worked in CBI for five years and Enforcement Directorate (ED) for seven years. Yogesh has been awarded the President's Medals for Distinguished and Meritorious Services for his excellence in tackling corruption and scams. As ED's Eastern Special Director, Gupta investigated the Sharada, Rose Valley, and Seashore chit scams in Bengal, the Narada bribery tape and the Basil investment scam cases that rocked the country and put top politicians behind bars.

It was estimated that Yogesh's promotion would be delayed as Nitin Aggarwal, who was sent back to the Kerala cadre from the post of BSF Director General, would have to be given the post of DGP. However, Yogesh was promoted as DGP when Nitin Aggarwal announced that he would arrive only at the end of October. Chief of Police Sheikh Darvesh Sahib, Chief of Fire Force K Padmakumar and Sanjeeb Kumar Patjoshi are the officers who have the title of DGP in the state.

Yogesh had told the Chief Minister that there is no problem even if he is reduced in rank to ADGP when Nitin Agarwal, the most senior in the Kerala cadre, returns. The promotion was given in the current vacancy due to this. A DGP rank will fall vacant when Sanjeeb Patjoshi retires in January.