Former IPS officer DG Vanzara, who was once falsely accused in the Sohrabuddin Shaikh-Tulsiram Prajapati and Ishrat Jahan encounter cases, has been given post-retirement promotion as Inspector General of Police (IGP), reports Times of India. The post-retirement promotion has come after six years of Vanzara’s retirement.
According to the notification issued by the Gujarat state Home Department, DG Vanzara has been promoted as the IGP with effect from September 29, 2007. Additional secretary to the state Home department, Nikhil Bhatt, on Wednesday confirmed that his department has issued a notification about Vanzara’s promotion.
Vanzara, a 1987-batch IPS officer, had retired as the Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG) on May 31, 2014.
The long-awaited promotion, with come to effect from September 29, 2007, will entitle him to all arrears from that date. Taking to Twitter, Vanzara posted a copy of the government notification.
Consequent to clean chit received from Judiciary in all Encounter Cases vch were concocted by Anti-National Forces agnst me & Gujarat Police, I am given Post-Retirement Promotion of Inspector General of Police wef 29-09-2007. I am thankful to both Govt of India & Govt of Gujarat. pic.twitter.com/sEH47SPM8H
— DG Vanzara (@VanzaraDg) February 25, 2020
The former IPS officer had retired in May 2014 after spending 8 years in jail. Vnazara, who had joined as DSP in 1980, had become an IPS officer in 1987. He had also served as DCP of the Ahmedabad crime branch and was later promoted as DIG of the ATS in Ahmedabad. He was arrested on April 24, 2007, in connection with the alleged fake encounter cases while he was posted in the Kutch and Banaskantha region.
Read: Firstpost deletes Interview with maker of “The Ishrat Jahan Conspiracy”
In May last year, the Special CBI court had acquitted DG Vanzara and AK Amin of all the charges in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case. Earlier, on April 30 the court had reserved its verdict on the two applications filed by Vanzara and Amin. Vanzara was acquitted of the Shohrabuddin and his wife Kauser Bi’s encounter cases in 2017.
After the post-retirement promotion order, the former IPS officer will now be eligible to get all arrears, pension and salary pending from September 2007, as per his promoted rank and position.
Vanzara was arrested by Gujarat CID and was lodged for over 5 years in Sabarmati central jail. In 2012, he was moved to the Taloja jail in Mumbai after the SC had shifted trial in Shohrabuddin case to Mumbai. He was again arrested by CBI and was brought back to Sabarmati central jail in 2013, where he had remained till his bail was granted by Bombay HC in Shohrabuddin case. He had finally walked out from jail in February 2015 after CBI allowed his bail plea in the Ishrat Jahan case.
