Hyderabad has a new police commissioner after the Telangana government appointed 1995-batch IPS officer Mahesh Muralidhar Bhagwat to replace VC Sajjanar in a 21-officer reshuffle that also changes the leadership of law and order, road safety, women’s safety and public transport-related departments.
Bhagwat, who was serving as director general of police for law and order, will take charge as Hyderabad police commissioner. Sajjanar, who had held the post for about 14 months, has been transferred and appointed DGP for fire, disaster response, emergency and civil defence, while also being given charge as director general of the Special Protection Force.
The reshuffle places Akun Sabharwal, who recently returned to Telangana after seven years on central deputation, as additional director general of police for law and order. Sabharwal joined the Research and Analysis Wing in 2019 and also served in the United States before being recalled to India and posted with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police.
Five officers of director general rank have been transferred as part of the exercise. Anil Kumar, who headed the Greyhounds and Octopus units and was associated with anti-Naxal operations and the surrender of senior Maoist leaders, has been appointed managing director of the Telangana State Road Transport Corporation. The posting is his first non-policing assignment. Vikram Singh Mann will replace him in the Greyhounds and Octopus leadership.
The changes also affect departments that handle public safety and urban mobility. Soumya Mishra, who served as director general of prisons for nearly three years, has been appointed DGP for women’s safety, legal and organisational matters. Swati Lakra will replace her as DGP of prisons and will additionally hold charge of the home guards department. Charu Sinha has been appointed DGP of the Anti-Corruption Bureau and will continue to hold additional charge of the Crime Investigation Department.
At the transport and road-safety level, Y Nagi Reddy has been moved from TGSRTC to become commissioner of civil supplies, replacing M Stephen Raveendra. Nagi Reddy had taken over as TGSRTC managing director in September 2025. Raveendra has been posted as the first director of the newly created Telangana Traffic Management, Road and Rail Safety Bureau, or TG-TMARS.
The reshuffle gives the new bureau additional senior officers and responsibilities. S Chandrasekhar Reddy has been appointed director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau, replacing Avinash Mohanty, who had been holding additional charge. Kartikeya will fill Chandrasekhar Reddy’s previous position as inspector general for multi-zone-I after moving from Intelligence. IG-rank officer Ramesh Naidu has also been posted to TG-TMARS.
Hyderabad traffic joint commissioner Joel Davis has been given additional charge as joint director for road safety and joint director for traffic in TG-TMARS. G Chandana Deepthi, joint commissioner of police for administration and traffic in Future City, has additionally been appointed DIG for zone-VII, Jogulamba. Other additional charges include DIG Intelligence for R Bhaskaran, DIG zone-II, Basara, for K Narayana Naik, and DIG coordination and zone-VI, Charminar, for LS Chowhan.
Sree Bala Devi, who was awaiting posting, has been appointed deputy director for administration at TG-TMARS. V Aravinda Babu has been posted as deputy commissioner of police for social media and information technology in Hyderabad. The new assignments will now determine the operational leadership of the city police, the state law-and-order machinery and the emerging road and rail safety bureau.
