NEW DELHI: In a surprise move, government on Friday abruptly terminated the tenure of Border Security Force (BSF) director general (DG) Nitin Agrawal and his second-in-command, special DG (Western Command) Y B Khurania, repatriating them to their respective state cadres.
Orders issued by the Appointments Committee of the Cabinet said Agrawal, an officer from the 1989-batch of the Kerala cadre, and Khurania, from the 1990-batch of the Odisha cadre, have been "prematurely" repatriated with "immediate effect".
While there was no official word on who the new BSF chief will be or on Agrawal's next position, sources indicated that Khurania could be appointed as the new DGP of Odisha.
It is perhaps the first instance of the abrupt removal of the head of the second-largest paramilitary force entrusted with safeguarding the borders.
The move comes amidst a surge in infiltration from across the border, which has resulted in casualties of forces and civilians and raised questions about the Pakistani army's intent. The Special DG Western Command oversees the International Border in Jammu and Kashmir and Punjab.
Agrawal was posted to BSF in June 2023, five months after the post was vacated by Pankaj Kumar Singh on Dec 31, 2022. Agarwal's appointment order had stated that his tenure would begin from the date of assuming the post until July 31, 2026, which marked his superannuation date.
At the time of his appointment, Agrawal was serving as additional DG of operations at the headquarters of the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) in Delhi.
With a strength of over 2.6 lakh personnel, BSF is tasked with safeguarding the 4,096-kilometre-long international borders with Pakistan and Bangladesh.
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