Indian police officer told off for showing up to work with ‘red hair’

A senior police officer in India was reportedly instructed to change his appearance after a picture showing him with bright red hair circulated widely on social media.

Rashmi Ranjan Das, 49, a deputy superintendent of police in Jagatsinghpur district in the eastern state of Odisha found himself at the centre of unexpected controversy this week when pictures of him reporting for duty with dyed hair started trending online.

The social media furore drew a swift response from his senior, who warned that such departures from convention were unacceptable in uniformed service.

An order directing Mr Das to revert to his natural hair colour was then issued by the office of the Inspector General of Police for the state’s Central Range.

“Everyone in the police force should respect the uniform and give utmost priority to discipline and public decorum,” the inspector general, Satyajit Naik, was quoted as saying by the local broadcaster NDTV.

While there is no specific clause in the police rulebook governing hairstyles or hair colour, senior officers say personnel are expected to maintain a simpler appearance.

Police sources cited by the broadcaster said that Mr Das, currently attached to the Human Rights Protection Cell, had been informally advised earlier to reconsider his appearance, but those suggestions were not acted upon.

The virality of his photograph ultimately triggered formal intervention.

Known among colleagues as a firm officer with experience handling organised crime cases, Mr Das declined to comment publicly on the directive.

“After finding the DSP being trolled on social media, I instructed the Jagatsinghpur SP to tell the officer to maintain decorum and keep his hairstyle decent, befitting a man in uniform,” Mr Naik told the news agency PTI.

“We have told the officer to maintain decency. Everything cannot go by written orders. From constables to senior officers, everyone in the police service should respect the uniform and give utmost priority to decency.”

Another officer said that “creating a controversy over a non-issue serves no purpose”.