Senior IPS officer KLN Rao assumed charge as the Director General of Police (DGP) and Head of Police Force (HOPF) of Gujarat on Wednesday, succeeding 1989-batch officer Vikas Sahay.
A 1992-batch IPS officer, Rao is currently serving as DGP CID (Crime) and will continue to hold the additional charge until further orders, officials said. Sahay, who was appointed HOPF on March 1, 2023, was due to retire on June 30 but was granted a six-month extension by the state government, which ended on Wednesday.
Rao was earlier posted as DGP Prisons and was appointed DGP CID (Crime) on September 30, 2025. He has around 22 months of service remaining before retirement. Academically distinguished, Rao holds an MSc degree and a PhD, a rare achievement among senior police officers. He hails from Tini village in Telangana and was born on October 26, 1967.
Over his career, Rao has served as Superintendent of Police in Mehsana, Sabarkantha and Kheda districts. He has also held key positions such as Range DIG in Rajkot and Joint Commissioner of Police in Ahmedabad, where he handled law and order as well as crime-related responsibilities.
Rao takes charge at a time when Gujarat Police is intensifying its focus on organised crime, narcotics, cybercrime and emerging urban policing challenges.