The Bombay Excessive Court docket on Wednesday directed the 21 Police Inspectors from Mumbai metropolis who had obtained interim aid from Maharashtra Administrative Tribunal (MAT) of a keep on their switch out of metropolis following Election Fee (EC) pointers for impending state meeting elections, to forthwith be a part of their transferred posts.
The HC, whereas listening to state authorities’s plea in opposition to MAT order filed by means of its Extra Chief Secretary and Director Common of Police (DGP), clarified that the act of 21 police inspectors (PIs) becoming a member of transferred posts “shall not are available in manner of prosecuting their purposes earlier than MAT” and they’ll be a part of the transferred posts “with out prejudice to their rights and contentions”.
The state authorities claimed that the Tribunal had erred in granting interim aid to the 21 officers based mostly on their private difficulties and the identical cannot have override the general public curiosity.
A complete 22 officers have been granted aid by MAT by means of an October 23 order of chairperson Justice Mridula Bhatkar on grounds of “real home difficulties, numerous illnesses of relations, bodily difficulties and people whose kids are finding out in tenth & twelfth commonplace, who would in any other case face hardship.
In respect to one of many PI, who had obtained an interim aid on account of a closed relative struggling most cancers, the holiday bench of Justices Sandeep V Marne and Manjusha A Deshpande stated that he shall make an utility for his retention earlier than the Police Institution Board-2 (PEB-2) by October 31 and similar shall be determined by the stated competent authority it inside 4 working days.
It had initially famous that the provisions of twenty-two N (2) of the Maharashtra Police Act vest obligatory jurisdiction in favour of competent authority to make mid time period switch in public curiosity and in case of administrative exigencies.
Subsequently, the HC famous that the expression ‘competent authority’ is the Police Institution Board-2 (PEB) for police personnel as much as rank of PI for switch out of respective commissionerate, vary or specialised company.
“Until the choice on his illustration, he shall be retained on the present posting. Nevertheless, if his utility is rejected, he shall be a part of the transferred place,” the bench famous in its order.
In mild of a press release made by attorneys representing the 21 PIs, the bench directed, “Accordingly, 21 PIs, whose names are mirrored in para 25 (Okay) of MAT order shall forthwith report back to their transferred locations.”
Granting interim aid to 22 officers, the MAT by means of its chairperson Justice Mridula Bhatkar had on October 23 directed the opposite 90 officers to report at their respective headquarters of transferred postings on October 26.
Nevertheless, posting the following listening to on November 27, the Tribunal had allowed the 91 officers to retain their service quarters until their pleas earlier than it have been lastly determined.
The law enforcement officials had challenged the October 4 order of Mumbai Police issued for transferring them as per EC pointers. The EC guidelines present that any officer who has served in the identical district for 3 out of 4 years must be transferred out in order that they don’t exert any affect within the polling course of.
Nevertheless, the aggrieved officers had claimed that many PIs who had accomplished three years within the Commissionerate weren’t transferred and the state authorities had adopted ‘decide and select coverage’ whereas issuing the October 4 switch order.
