Suspended Delhi Police ACP Manasvi Vashistha has had a diverse career, serving as the personal security officer (PSO) to former and handling several assignments in the national capital. His transfer recently triggered a police protest, bringing him into the spotlight. His career has also included stints in the central armed police forces.
Vashistha previously served as the Personal Security Officer (PSO) to former Vice-President Jagdeep Dhankhar until his resignation in 2025, according to a PTI report.
A 2019-batch officer of the Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands Police Service (DANIPS), Vashistha has also served with the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and the Delhi Police Security Unit.
Born and raised in Vashistha comes from a family of doctors. He studied mechanical engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kharagpur, from 2009 to 2013.
He joined the SSB in 2016 and served with the force for four years, from 2016 to 2020. During this period, he was posted in Jammu and Kashmir and Bihar.
He later joined DANIPS as part of the 2019-20 batch. After completing his initial training and serving in Delhi, he was transferred to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands in 2022.
During his tenure there, he served as Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) in Diglipur and Havelock. He returned to Delhi in December 2024.
In the national capital, Vashistha held several positions within the Delhi Police. In December 2025, he was posted as Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) in Gandhi Nagar, where he served for around three months.
He subsequently joined the Delhi Police Security Unit and was involved in security arrangements for the AI Summit and the visit of Russian President Vladimir Putin.
In March 2026, he was again posted as ACP, Gandhi Nagar.
Vashistha is married and has two children, aged three years and six months.
The controversy began after advocate Lalit Bansal sustained a serious head injury in an alleged assault. An FIR was subsequently registered at Shahdara Police Station, according to the Coordination Committee of All District Courts Bar Associations of Delhi.
On the evening of October 23, several advocates visited the police station seeking legal action against those named in the case. The committee claimed that ACP Manasvi Vashistha and SHO Arun Kumar assured the lawyers that the accused, who were present at the police station at the time, would be arrested.
However, the following day, the advocates learnt that the accused had not been arrested and had reportedly been released, according to the committee’s circular. This allegedly sparked serious concern among members of the Bar.
The committee further claimed that when the advocates returned to Shahdara Police Station to raise concerns over the handling of the case and seek accountability, a scuffle broke out between them and the two police officers.
Meanwhile, the transfer of Vashistha and Kumar triggered protests by police personnel on Monday. Around 100 officers, including women personnel, gathered outside the Delhi Police headquarters, demanding that the two officers be reinstated to their previous postings.
A delegation of police personnel subsequently met Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar and submitted a list of five demands. These included action against lawyers involved in the Shahdara incident and the registration of FIRs against advocates accused of indulging in “hooliganism”.
Earlier, on October 30, Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar held a meeting with representatives of the Bar Council of Delhi and district court bar associations. Following the meeting, it was decided to establish a joint coordination and grievance redressal mechanism.
