Gandhinagar: Dr. K. Laxmi Narayan Rao, popularly known as K. L. N. Rao, has been appointed as the in-charge new chief of the Gujarat Police. Rao has taken charge as the Director General of Police (DGP) of the state, succeeding Vikas Sahay, whose six-month post-retirement extension ended on Tuesday.

A 1992-batch officer of the Indian Police Service (IPS), Rao was previously serving as DGP, Prisons and Correctional Administration. Born in 1967, he is scheduled to retire in October 2027. Hailing from Telangana, Rao brings with him an extensive academic background, holding an M.Sc., a Ph.D., and a Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy and Management (PGPPM) from IIM Bangalore. He was appointed to the IPS in February 1993.

Rao formally assumed charge at a ceremony held at Police Bhavan in Gandhinagar, where outgoing DGP Vikas Sahay handed over the baton to him.

In terms of seniority within the Gujarat cadre, the only IPS officer senior to Rao is Dr. Shamsher Singh, also of the 1991 batch, who is currently on deputation with the Border Security Force (BSF) and is due to retire in March 2026. The next in line in the state police hierarchy is Gyanender Singh Malik, the Ahmedabad Police Commissioner, a 1993-batch IPS officer who is set to retire in November 2028.