Badlapur assault fallout: Ex Mumbai civic chief Chahal appointed home secretary

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government on Thursday appointed senior Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer and former Mumbai municipal commissioner IS Chahal as the additional chief secretary (ACS) of the home department.
Chahal was earlier the ACS in the chief minister’s office. Officials said the government decided to appoint a full-time home secretary before the model code of conduct is enforced ahead of the state assembly polls in November. The state did not have a full-time home secretary following the incumbent Sujata Saunik’s appointment as chief secretary on June 30. She continued to hold additional charge of the home department, which supervises the work of the police and allied departments. “Had we not appointed anyone now, the election commission would have appointed a regular officer once the code of conduct was enforced,” said a senior IAS officer.
The appointment also comes in a week when the state government has been facing a lot of flak over the handling of the Badlapur school sexual abuse case. The local police did not lodge a complaint for 12 hours after the parents of the two four-year-old survivors approached them.
The state government discussed several names for the post, according to officials. While chief minister Eknath Shinde was keen on appointing Chahal, his deputy Devendra Fadnavis, who also holds the home portfolio, had some other names in mind. Chahal’s appointment is being seen as Shinde asserting his authority over Fadnavis.
Manisha Mhaiskar, ACS (public works department), was considered for the post but eventually not picked because the 1992 IAS batch officer is junior to state police chief Rashmi Shukla (1988 IPS batch) and Mumbai police commissioner Vivek Phansalkar (1989 IPS batch). As per the norms, the state police chief does not report to a junior officer. This also ruled out V Radha, ACS (general administration) from the 1994 batch.
Chahal is due to retire in 2026 and could become the chief secretary after Saunik, who may apply for the state election commissioner’s post, which will be vacant next month. If she is selected, Chahal may succeed her. Else, he would have to wait till she retires in June 2025.