IAS officer faces action after ‘shoving, trying to slap’ BJP leader in UP

IAS officer Rinkoo Singh Rahee has been transferred from the post of Sub-Divisional Magistrate (Jaluan), days after an altercation between him and Block Pramukh Ram Raja Niranjan during an inspection of a cold storage facility. Niranjan, a BJP leader, had accused Rahee of allegedly shoving and attempting to slap him during the inspection. Rahee, a 2022-batch IAS officer, denied the allegations and called them false and misleading.

Additional District Magistrate, Jalaun, Rajeev Raj, confirmed that Rahee has been transferred from the post of SDM (Jalaun) to SDM (Judicial). District Magistrate Rajesh Kumar Pandey could not be reached for comment on the reason behind the move.

The incident came to light on Monday after Niranjan released CCTV footage. In his complaint to the District Magistrate, he accused Rahee of alleged misconduct during an inspection of the cold storage facility, in which he is a major shareholder, on June 23.

CCTV footage, a confrontation

Speaking to The Indian Express, Niranjan said a joint inspection team led by Rahee visited the cold storage facility at Mitara Orai village, and the SDM asked whether there were any shortcomings.

“I told him he had come to inspect the premises and that if he found any deficiencies, we would rectify them immediately,” Niranjan said.

He claimed the SDM then directed staff to switch on the fire pump. “The pump is connected to a four-inch pipeline that carries water over nearly 250 feet, so it naturally takes a few minutes for the line to build pressure. Soon afterwards, the SDM asked me to produce all relevant documents within two-and-a-half minutes. I requested him to come into the office… but he refused,” Niranjan alleged.

Niranjan said a director of the facility, Rajesh Shukla, had gone to supervise the fire pump operation. “I called him and asked him to bring the documents… Meanwhile, the SDM began recording the proceedings on his mobile phone, and one of my employees also started filming the inspection. During this time, the SDM said the two-and-a-half minutes had expired. I told him the documents were on their way,” he said.

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“At that point, the SDM allegedly tried to slap me… and pushed me,” Niranjan alleged. “The CCTV footage captures the entire incident. It also shows that as soon as the pipeline was filled, the fire pump began discharging water at full pressure,” he added.

Niranjan further alleged that the SDM returned 18 minutes later after allegedly having “publicly humiliated” him in the presence of more than 50 farmers and labourers who had gathered at the facility.

Singh denied the allegations, claiming the footage circulated publicly was incomplete and that it would be inappropriate to draw conclusions based on short video clips.

He said Niranjan brought his mobile phone “excessively close” while recording the inspection. “The phone was merely moved aside to avoid any untoward incident or unpleasant situation. This.. is being wrongly portrayed as a slap or physical assault,” he said.

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Responding to the allegation of a push, Rahee said Niranjan had come into “inappropriate physical proximity”, making it necessary to maintain a safe distance. “The immediate response was simply to create physical space…,” he said.

BJP Jalaun district president, Urvija Dixit, said Niranjan is associated with the party but does not hold any organisational post.

DM Rajesh Kumar Pandey ordered an inquiry by a two-member committee. Additional District Magistrate Rajeev Raj, a member of the panel, said notices had been issued to both the Block Pramukh and Rahee, asking them to record their statements. He said the committee will also record statements of bystanders seen in CCTV footage.

No stranger to controversies

Rahee is no stranger to the limelight.

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In April, while posted with the Board of Revenue in Lucknow, he wrote to the President of India seeking a “technical resignation” and requesting repatriation to his previous service, alleging that he has been kept away from field work for long.

In the seven-page letter, Rahee had claimed the prevailing administrative ecosystem resists reforms and expressed concern that being kept away from meaningful field exposure during early IAS years hampers administrative learning and effectiveness.

Before his selection in the civil services under the Persons with Disabilities (PwD) quota, Rahee was in the Provincial Civil Service (PCS), from the 2004 batch. He was posted as Social Welfare Officer, when he alleged a multi-crore scam in the social welfare department in Muzaffarnagar that led to him nearly being killed in 2009 after he was shot multiple times.

He later cleared the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examination and joined the IAS in 2023.

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In July 2025, on the first day of his posting as an IAS officer in Shahjahanpur, a video surfaced online purportedly showing him doing sit-ups holding his ears during a protest by lawyers. The UP government then transferred him to the Board of Revenue in Lucknow.