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Jammu and Kashmir IPS officer Basant Rath has been suspended for alleged instances of gross misconduct and misbehaviour, the Ministry of Home Affairs has said.

“J&K IPS officer Basant Rath has been suspended with immediate effect, in connection with repeated instances of gross misconduct and misbehaviour, which have been brought to the notice of the government,” the MHA said.

The order, issued on Tuesday evening, said the 2000 batch IPS officer was immediately attached to police headquarters in Srinagar.

Rath, posted as inspector general (IG), civil defence, in the union territory, has been asked not to leave the headquarters without permission from the director-general of Jammu and Kashmir Police.

He has been placed under suspension with immediate effect, it said.

Basant Rath, a 2000 batch IPS officer, had recently written a letter in which he expressed apprehension about his safety due to “certain activities” of the Jammu and Kashmir Police chief. The letter had gone viral on social media, triggering a controversy.

In the June 25 letter, addressed to the Gandhinagar police station SHO, Basant Rath stated, “I’m writing you to take note of my genuine apprehensions about my safety and reputation. I am doing it as a private citizen of the country. In my personal capacity. Not as a civil servant. Not as a policeman.”

“I am not asking you to lodge an FIR against the person mentioned above. I am just asking you to make this letter a part of the daily diary at your police station… In case something bad happens to me, you should know whose number you should dial. With due respect,” added the letter, in whose subject line the name of the Jammu and Kashmir Police chief was handwritten.

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