In a swift reshuffle, Murali Dhar, former chief of Kolkata Police’s detective department, has been appointed the new police commissioner of Barrackpore, replacing Ajay Thakur. This is the seventh change in the post since 2019, reflecting continued administrative flux in the politically sensitive industrial belt on the northern outskirts of Kolkata.
Murali Dhar, who was heading the police training centre in Barrackpore, had been removed from his detective department role in Lalbazar last year. His return to an active field posting is being seen as a strategic move by Nabanna, the state secretariat. Ajay Thakur, who served as the Barrackpore CP until now, has been transferred and posted as deputy inspector general (DIG), criminal investigation department (CID). Since the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the Barrackpore Police Commissionerate has witnessed a series of changes at the top. The tenure of Sunil Choudhury was followed by that of Tanmoy Ray Chaudhury, Manoj Verma, Ajay Thakur, Alok Rajoria, and again Ajay Thakur — with Murali Dhar now taking charge.
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The frequent reshuffles are seen against the backdrop of persistent law-and-order challenges in the Barrackpore industrial zone, which has remained volatile since pre-2019 polls. The region saw violent clashes, bloodshed, and multiple incidents of political unrest that continued even after the elections. Soon after the 2019 polls, Tanmoy Ray Chaudhury was brought in to replace Sunil Choudhury, leveraging his experience in tackling criminal elements in the Hooghly industrial region. However, sources in the police establishment said Tanmoy could not “stabilise” the situation in Barrackpore and was soon replaced. Manoj Verma, credited with managing volatile situations in Junglemahal and Darjeeling, was then posted to cool down tensions in Barrackpore. Verma was later elevated as Kolkata Police commissioner after Rajeev Kumar. The latest posting of Murali Dhar is being closely watched in police and political circles, as the government aims to restore stability in a region that continues to pose complex policing challenges.