A plea in Delhi High Court Tuesday challenged the appointment of Haryana Director General of Police Manoj Yadava, claiming that the Supreme Court's directions regarding selection, appointment and tenure of service of DGPs were "not being followed".
The petition by IPS officer Prabhat Ranjan Deo sought the quashing of the recommendation and empanelment of Yadava by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) and his appointment, by February 18 order of the state government.
Justice Suresh Kait, before whom the plea came up for hearing, sought certain clarifications from the UPSC and the Haryana government and listed the matter for further proceeding on April 11.
Deo, represented by senior advocate Ajit Kumar Sinha and advocate Ashwarya Sinha, said he was not even considered for promotion to the post even though he has a "blemishless record of over 30 years of service".
The plea also sought a stay on the appointment of Yadava as the state's DGP.
The counsel said that despite being the senior most and fully eligible, Deo was superseded and not even considered by the UPSC in the process of empanelment for the post of DGP.
"The senior most and reputed officer such as the petitioner (Deo) will be forced to work under and take instructions from his junior officer, whose eligibility for the post is in question. Such discrimination by the respondents towards petitioner and other senior officer with much more experience than respondent no. 4 (Yadava), who is enjoying a higher position and reputation is totally insulting, humiliating and patently illegal," the petition claimed.
It said the apex court's direction was not being complied with and misinterpreted by UPSC wherein Deo, despite being in the shortlisted panel sent by the state government amongst the eligible officers, was not even considered probably on the ground that his tenure was less than two years due to shortfall of four months before superannuation.
The apex court had on March 13 clarified its last year's order on police reforms and said the officers who have a minimum of six months tenure left in service can be considered for the post of DGP.
In its July last year, the top court had passed a slew of directions on police reforms and had directed the UPSC to consider those IPS officers "who have got clear two years of service" for appointment as DGPs, besides giving due weightage to "merit and seniority".
The petition alleged that the UPSC "clearly erred and misinterpreted" the directions of the apex court which indicates that the extended term beyond the date of superannuation should be a reasonable period.
"Thus, non consideration of the petitioner on the criterion of an officer to have mandatory two years of length of service remaining is neither in conformity with the spirit of the Supreme Court direction nor in consonance with settled practice as followed by UPSC itself," it said.
Deo said that on the date of vacancy, that is October 1, 2018, he clearly had two years of service left and even as on date, he has 18 months of service before superannuation.
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