* Raphael Hertzog <hertzog@debian.org>, 2013-12-30, 19:42:
dpkg-divert is the usual answer when you need/want to replace something without the consent of the other side.
FWIW, Policy §3.9 reads: “You should not use ‘dpkg-divert’ on a file belonging to another package without consulting the maintainer of that package first.”
-- Jakub Wilk