E-Paper
New Haryana DGP: With Yadava named RPF head, state to take up empanelment of IPS officers with Centre
The expected “back channeling” by Haryana government is to ensure that three IPS officers serving in the state, Muhammad Akil and RC Mishra (1989 batch) and Shatrujeet Kapur (1990 batch), get empanelled on the basis of seniority, merit and experience. Chief minister ML Khattar is keen to pick Kapur to head the state police force.
With the appointments committee of the cabinet (ACC) of the central government appointing senior most Haryana-cadre IPS officer Manoj Yadava as director general, Railway Protection Force (RPF), on Tuesday night, the Haryana government is likely to speak to the Union rail and home ministries to convey to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) that it would not be possible to relieve him for appointment as the Haryana DGP.
The expected “back channeling” by the state government is to ensure that three IPS officers serving in the state, Muhammad Akil and RC Mishra (1989 batch) and Shatrujeet Kapur (1990 batch) get empanelled on the basis of seniority, merit and experience.
Chief minister Manohar Lal Khattar is keen to pick Kapur to head the state police force.
Also read: New Haryana DGP: Within 48 hrs, UPSC asks Haryana for Manoj Yadava’s service record
Last week, the UPSC sought the service record of 1988-batch IPS officer and former state DGP Yadava to make it a part of the proposal sent by the state government for selection of the next director general of police (DGP). The state government had omitted Yadava’s name from the proposal citing his unwillingness to come back to his parent cadre. However, the state government’s move was not in line with the Supreme Court directives and undertakings given by the Union ministry of home affairs (MHA) in the apex court that that the consent of an officer is not required for the purpose of empanelment as DGP of the state. The MHA response came during the hearing of an interlocutory application filed by the Nagaland government in the apex court. In light of the SC directive and MHA’s undertaking, the UPSC sought Yadava’s service dossier.
Yadava, who was the Haryana DGP from 2019-21, is the senior most IPS officer in the cadre and is on central deputation at present as DG (investigations), National Human Rights Commission. The composition of the UPSC panel would change if Yadava gets empanelled as then Kapur’s name would not get included.
The state government had on July 11 sent a proposal containing the names of nine IPS officers to the UPSC for shortlisting three officers for the top job as the tenure of the incumbent DGP, PK Agrawal, ends on August 15.
“The state government would have to speak to the central ministries and get a communication from them that service of Yadava cannot be spared as he has been appointed as DG, RPF. The UPSC empanelment committee headed by the UPSC chairman or a member also has Union home secretary or his nominee as a member. It depends what view the empanelment committee takes. In case of 1991-batch Nagaland-cadre IPS officer A Sunil Achaya, who is on central deputation, posted as additional secretary in the cabinet secretariat, the MHA had told the SC it would not be possible to relieve him for appointment as the DGP, Nagaland, having regard to the nature of the posting,” said a central government official familiar with the process.
Officials said that the state government could have earlier also made a request to the MHA to convey that services of Yadava cannot be spared for the post of the Haryana DGP as he is holding the post of DG (investigations), NHRC, a central assignment. “However, the difference is that the DG, RPF, is a comparatively important post and the timing of Yadava’s appointment would make a case for requesting the MHA,” an official said.
Criteria laid down by Supreme Court
“The UPSC has to consider the names of all IPS officers in the DG and ADGP rank who have completed at least 30 years of service on the basis of their length of service, very good record and range of experience for heading the police force. The consent of the officer is not required for the purpose of empanelment as DGP. Once, three senior-most officers are empanelled for promotion to that rank by the UPSC, the state government has the choice to pick any of the three to head the state police force,” said a central government functionary.
Hindustan Times had on July 10 exclusively reported that that the Haryana government’s proposal was not in line with the apex court’s directives in the Prakash Singh case and undertakings given by the MHA in the SC and the UPSC may ask the state government to revisit the proposal. HT had also indicated that the state government could have chosen a more appropriate path by requesting the MHA to make a contention before the UPSC in the case of Yadava – that his services cannot be spared.
The nine IPS officers whose names were sent on July 11 to the UPSC are: 1989-batch officers, Muhammad Akil and RC Mishra; two 1990-batch officers, Shatrujeet Kapur and Desh Raj Singh; a 1991-batch officer Alok Kumar Roy; two 1992-batch officers, OP Singh and Ajay Singhal; and two 1993-batch officers, Alok Mittal and AS Chawla. The name of 1991-batch IPS officer SK Jain has been held back as he could not get an integrity certificate from the state government, having adverse entries in his service records.
What MHA told the apex court
On January 9, 2023, while hearing an interlocutory application, the Supreme Court had asked the MHA to file an affidavit on whether concurrence of an officer is necessary for empanelling him/her for appointment as DGP where the officer is on central deputation and whether the services of A Sunil Achaya were required due to the exigencies of service on central deputation or whether he can be empanelled for the post of DGP, Nagaland, in view of the fact that a sufficient number of eligible officers are not available for empanelment. The MHA clarified the position stating that the consent of the officer is not required for the purpose of empanelment as the DGP of the state but since Achaya is on central deputation, posted as additional secretary in the cabinet secretariat, having regard to the nature of the posting, it would not be possible to relieve him for appointment as the DGP of Nagaland.
