PITHORAGARH: Uttarakhand Police constable Sher Singh has been dismissed from service after a departmental inquiry found him guilty of violating service conduct rules for appearing in uniform at a Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, where he alleged irregularities in the state’s patwari recruitment examination.Pithoragarh SP Akshaya Prahlad Konde said Singh, who had been transferred from Rudraprayag to Pithoragarh on administrative grounds, was suspended on July 20 for unauthorised absence from duty and failing to respond to official notices.The controversy escalated after a video of the July 24 protest surfaced on social media, showing Singh in police uniform addressing the gathering. During his speech, he extended support to the agitation, handed what he described as his resignation to CJP leader Abhijit Dipke, and claimed that the question paper for the Uttarakhand patwari recruitment examination was available at grocery stores.Following the video’s circulation, Pithoragarh police initiated both departmental and legal proceedings against him.“A departmental inquiry found Singh’s conduct to be in gross violation of the Uttarakhand Government Servants’ Conduct Rules, 2002, and the Uttarakhand Police Act, 2007. Based on the inquiry report, he was dismissed from service with immediate effect on Tuesday,” Konde said.The SP added that Singh is no longer an employee of the Uttarakhand Police and that any future participation by him in protests or political activities would be in his personal capacity.Konde also said Singh is an accused in a land-grabbing case allegedly involving gangster Praveen Balmiki. He was earlier lodged in Haridwar jail in connection with the case and is currently out on bail.
