Mumbai:Â Mumbai Police Commissioner Satyapal Singh has quit from the Indian Police Service, a home department official confirmed Friday. Singh said he is considering a political career.
Home Minister R.R. Patil is yet to take a decision in the matter, the official said.
Singh, 59, told the media late Thursday that he has quit and is weighing future career options. These included a Lok Sabha ticket from either the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) or the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), or an international professional assignment.
But he made it clear he has not yet taken any final call on any of the offers.
Singh, who has earlier served as Pune and Nagpur police chief, was due for promotion as one of the six state Directors General of Police (DGPs), but the proposal was stuck in a political logjam since the past few months.
An officer of the 1980 IPS batch, Singh took over the as Mumbai police chief in Aug 2012 and earlier served with the Central Bureau of Investigation.
He was also assigned to the sensitive Maoist-affected Gadchiroli district in eastern Maharashtra, and the Maoist regions of Andhra Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh.
Known for his controversial statements several times in his professional life, Singh becomes the first city police commissioner to quit while in service though he had almost two years to go before retirement.
A post-graduate in chemistry, Singh has authored articles and books on Vedas, spiritualism, yoga and management principles during his career and holds a doctorate in public administration.