Golchha appointed DG of Tihar prison in Delhi

Senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the 1992 batch, Satish Golccha, on Wednesday was appointed the new chief of Tihar jail by lieutenant governor VK Saxena based on recommendation from the police establishment board, officials said.

Golccha replaced Sanjay Baniwal, a 1989-batch IPS officer, who superannuated from the service on April 30 (Tuesday). The appointment of Golccha as the new DG (Delhi Prisons) comes at a tumultuous time, when the prison has been in news following the detention of Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal in judicial custody since April 2. Since 2022, at least four other senior Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders have been lodged in Tihar jail, including Satendra Jain, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh.

Speaking to HT, Golccha said that he will fulfil his duties as the new chief of Tihar jail in accordance with provisions of law. “I will follow all my legal duties with due diligence and will ensure that all the facilities enlisted for under-trial prisoners are provided to them without discrimination,” Golccha said.

Officials with the LG secretariat said that the posting was done after receiving clearance from the Election Commission of India (ECI), as the Model Code of Conduct is currently in force.

Golccha has previously served as the deputy commissioner of police (DCP), joint commissioner and special commissioner of Delhi Police. He gained prominence for his actions as the special commissioner of police (law and order) during riots in northeast Delhi in 2020. He also served as the director general of police (DGP) of Arunachal Pradesh from February 2022 to June 2023, before he was transferred back to Delhi.

Meanwhile, 1997-batch IPS officer Sagar Preet Hooda has been posted as special commissioner of police (intelligence), taking over from Golccha. Hooda was previously special commissioner of police-operations (PCR and communication). He also has additional charge of perception management and media cell.

Hooda, in turn, was replaced by 1990-batch senior IPS Tajendra Singh Luthra as the special CP-operations. He will continue to hold charge of his previous position as special CP-technology and project implementation.