Bhubaneswar, Aug 14: Following the retirement of Odisha Director General of Police (DGP) Y.B. Khurania on August 16, Crime Branch DG Vinaytosh Mishra will remain in additional charge of DGP (Head of Police Force) with effect from the same day, until further orders.

Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi has approved the proposal for Mishra, DGP (CID, Crime Branch) to take the additional charge at a time when the appointment of Odisha’s next full-time DGP remains subject to a legal challenge.

Mishra is a 1993-batch IPS officer.

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) to defer the process of selecting Odisha’s next DGP until August 18. The Court is scheduled to hear a petition challenging the selection process on that date.

The direction came after senior advocate P. Chidambaram mentioned a Public Interest Litigation before a bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant. The petition alleges that the Odisha government’s process for selecting the new DGP is in violation of the guidelines laid down by the Supreme Court in its 2006 Prakash Singh judgment.

With the UPSC selection process temporarily deferred and Khurania set to retire on August 16, Mishra’s additional charge will ensure continuity in the functioning of the state police force until further orders.