Hyderabad, Oct 11
Indian cricketer Mohammed Siraj has officially taken on the role of Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in Telangana.
The pacer expressed his deep appreciation and gratitude to Chief Minister Revanth Reddy for this honour as he reported to Telangana's Director General of Police (DGP) Jitender on Friday.
Siraj was accompanied by MP M. Anil Kumar Yadav and Chairman and President of Telangana Minority Residential Educational Institutions Society (TGMREIS), Mohammed Faheemuddin Qureshi.
It was in July that Chief Minister Revanth Reddy announced a residential plot and a government job for Siraj when the latter called on him after India won the T20 World Cup. Revanth Reddy has congratulated Siraj, a member of the victorious team, for bringing laurels to the country and a great honour to Telangana in international cricket.
Highlighting Siraj's achievements and his contribution to India's T20 World Cup victory, the Chief Minister had told the state Assembly recently that the Group-I job to the international cricketer will give him direct entry to high-ranking positions such as Deputy Superintendent of Police if he chooses to join the police force. He said that though Siraj was not educationally qualified for the Group-I job, the Cabinet has given him the exemption as part of its efforts to encourage sportspersons.
"For a Group-I job, the required educational qualification is a degree. Siraj has passed intermediate (12th class) but we have given the exemption to provide him the Group-I job," he said.
In August, the state government allotted a house site measuring 600 square yards to Siraj in Hyderabad's upscale Jubilee Hills. The state government issued an order allotting the land free of cost to the pacer at Road No 78, Jubilee Hills.
Earlier, the state Cabinet decided to allocate 600 square yards of house sites each in Hyderabad for shooter Esha Singh, two-time world boxing champion Nikhat Zareen and fast bowler Siraj. The state government also decided to provide Group-1 jobs to Nikhat Zareen and Siraj. Nikhat joined the Telangana Police as a DSP on September 18.