Deepak Thapa appointed IGP of Nepal Police

Kathmandu, Mar. 18: Additional Inspector General (AIG) Deepak Thapa of Nepal Police has been appointed the 31st Inspector General of Nepal Police. 

A meeting of the Council of Ministers held at the Official Residence of Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli in Baluwatar on Monday evening decided to appoint Thapa to the post of IGP, Minister for Communication and Information Technology, Prithvi Subba Gurung told journalists after the Cabinet meeting. 

Earlier, IGP Basant Kunwar got compulsory retirement on Monday. Thapa was in race for the top position of the Nepal Police with AIGs Tek Bahadur Tamang and Sudip Giri.

Newly appointed IGP Thapa was leading the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB) of the force in the capacity of AIG until Monday evening. Tamang is heading the Kathmandu Valley Police Office, Rani Pokhari, and Giri is leading the National Police Training Academy, Maharajgunj.

The Police Regulations of 2012 state that the government can promote any candidate deemed suitable for the position of IGP. This provision often leads to a flurry of political support-seeking efforts among aspiring candidates until the final decision is made.

This time, all three candidates had sought support until the last moment. However, the government appointed Thapa, who was ranked first, as the new IGP.

Who is Thapa?

Thapa, originally from Sipadol of Bhaktapur, was working as a permanent government schoolteacher before joined the police service on September 4, 1995.

After passing his Intermediate level, he began teaching at a private school. Later in 1991, he passed an exam taken for the post of lower secondary level teacher and became a permanent government teacher at a girls' school in Bhaktapur. 

He topped both his Intermediate and BA exams in Bhaktapur Campus. After passing his BA, he applied for the post of Police Inspector in 1993. Outgoing IGP, Basant Kunwar, also applied for the same position. However, the government appointed only 52 out of the 60 shortlisted candidates. The remaining eight, including Thapa, were appointed later, in 1995. 

After joining the police service, Thapa had the opportunity to lead various police offices, including the Area Police Office in Sanga, Butwal, and Garuda in Rautahat. He also served as the head of the Police Circle in Maharajgunj, and commanded the District Police Offices in Rukum, Khotang, Sunsari, Morang, Makwanpur and Chitwan districts.

Thapa also worked at Butwal Training Centre and the Police Training Acadmey in Maharajgunj. He served as the head of the police at the Commission for the Investigation of Abuse of Authority’s Surkhet and Butwal offices.

As an SSP, he led the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office, and as a DIG, he led the Bagmati Province Police. He also served in various administrative roles, including managing the Directorate of Administration, the Kathmandu Valley Police Office, and others.

Thapa will retire in six months after completing 30 years of service. However, if the proposed police law bill is passed through the Parliament, he will be able to serve additional six months as the head of the police force. The present Nepal Police Bill has provisioned of scrapping 30-year service period.

Similarly, the Cabinet meeting appointed Dinesh Bhatta of Baitadi as Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority (NDRRMA) under the Ministry of Home Affairs. Earlier, the Anil Pokhrel was the CEO of the NDRRMA. The position was laying vacant after the four-year term of CEO Pokhrel expired.