9911796707
TMI Blog2007 (3) TMI 817X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the police Department in the State of Andhra Pradesh. Most of them were working as Inspectors of Police in the city of Hyderabad. They approached the Tribunal with a prayer to declare insertion of Note-2 of Rule 3 and proviso to Rule 6 of the Andhra Pradesh Police (Civil) Service Rules, 1998 (hereinafter to be referred to as 'Rules of 1998') issued by G.O. Ms. No. 267, Home (Police-E) Department, dated 26th November, 2001 by amendment of Rule as arbitrary and discriminatory being violative of Articles 14, 16, 21 and 311 of the Constitution of India. 3. By this amendment a scheme was introduced for accelerated promotion for the outstanding work in the field of anti extremist operation. The Note 2 appended to Rule 3 reads as under: Note 2: The Government may consider the cases of deserving Inspectors of Police and Deputy Superintendents of Police (Civil), for accelerated promotions to the next higher ranks in recognition of their outstanding work in the field of anti-extremist operation irrespective of their seniority as an incentive by following the relevant procedure as specified by the Government from time to time in this regard. And the Proviso to Rule 6 reads as un ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ecommended cases shall be reviewed by the Superior Officers and shall be forwarded to the Director General & Inspector General of Police with his remarks. The Director General & Inspector General of Police shall send all such cases received from the various Unit Officers/Superintendents of Police/Commissioners of Police to the Additional Director General of Police/Inspector General of Intelligence Department for scrutiny and his remarks. The Additional General of Police/Inspector General of Police of Intelligence department will in turn send such cases to the Special Intelligence Branch (SIB) of the Intelligence Department which exclusively monitors the Anti-Extremists Operations of the State for scrutiny and recommendations. Thereafter, the Inspector General/Deputy Inspector of Police of the Special Intelligence Branch will scrutinize all such cases thoroughly as to the quality of each such case and forward back the special remarks. The same shall be forwarded to the Director General & Inspector General of Police by the Additional Director General of Police/Inspector General of Police, Intelligence Department with his remarks. All such cases shall be placed before a Departmental C ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... d to be ultra vires as it has been observed by the High Court that it creates a class within class. The High Court held that the amendment did not satisfy the test of reasonable classification and it further observed that fortuitous circumstance cannot be made a basis for creating a separate class within the class. Therefore, the High Court came to the conclusion that the classification made upon such basis cannot be treated as a reasonable classification. It was also observed that fortuitous circumstances cannot be made the basis for creating class out of large number of persons similarly situated. It was also pointed out that just because some persons were lucky enough to get a posting in the naxal affected area , they got accelerated promotion but others who were not fortunate to get a posting in the naxal affected area, they were denied promotion. It was submitted that even the officers posted in same unit may not get posting in the Police-station where there is naxal affected area and others are lucky enough to get the posting, then they stand to gain and others who are not lucky enough to get posting in that area they will be denied the opportunity. Therefore, it is discrimin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... o those who had enrolled or were commissioned in the armed forces during the emergency. The State Government was entitled to do so. In our view, there is a clear and intelligible difference between those who had already chosen the armed forces as a career when the emergency was declared and those who, in response to the nation's call, joined the armed forces after the emergency was declared. It was in the country's interest at that critical juncture to make service in the armed forces attractive and compensate those who would otherwise have chosen other vocations. The grant of benefits to the latter class while denying them to the former class is in no way arbitrary or discriminatory. 9. In another case of Ravi Paul and Ors. v. Union of India and Ors. reported in [1995]1SCR419 their Lordships observed as under: The ECOs who were absorbed/appointed to the BSF during the period 1967-71 had joined the Army during the emergency in the wake of the Chinese aggression. By joining the Army when the country needed their services they had made a sacrifice. Moreover, they were absorbed in the BSF at a time when there was need for competent officers in the BSF and in order to attrac ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... the method of recruitment to the posts mentioned in the Andhra Pradesh Police service. Rule 2 contemplates the constitution of service. The service is divided into three categories. Category (1) consists of Additional Superintendent of Police (Non-Cadre) including Officer-on-Special Duty and Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police. Category (2) consists of Deputy Superintendent of Police including Assistant Commissioner of Police other than Assistant Commissioner of Police (Headquarters and City Armed Reserve). Category (3) consists of Inspector of Police and Inspector of Police (Women). Rule 3 deals with method of recruitment. Rule 3 with appended Note 2 is reproduced under: 3. Method of appointment: Subject to the other provisions in these rules, the method of appointment for the several categories mentioned in column (1) shall be by the method specified in the corresponding column (2) of the Table below: Note 1: In every cycle of ten vacancies, the appointment to the post of Deputy Superintendent of Police shall be as follows namely: Provided that appointment by transfer to the posts of Inspectors of Police including Hyderabad City Police shall be made by the Deputy In ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... nd Deputy Superintendent of Police respectively. Provided that in the case of the accelerated promotions, the minimum service as specified above shall not apply. 13. As per Rule 6, a Deputy Superintendent of Police will not be entitled for promotion as Additional Superintendent of Police unless he has put in five years of service and not less than six years of service for Sub-Inspector of Police and Inspector of Police to be promoted as Inspector of Police and Deputy Superintendent of Police respectively, meaning thereby that a Sub-Inspector of Police in order to be promoted as Inspector of Police will have to put in six years of service and likewise an Inspector of Police will have to put in six years of service to be promoted as Deputy Superintendent of Police. The proviso to Rule 6 reads as under: Provided that in the case of the accelerated promotions, the minimum service as specified above shall not apply. 14. Therefore, for accelerated promotion, the requirement of minimum service has been dispensed with. Rule 7 deals with probation and for direct recruitment to the post of Deputy Superintendent of Police (Category-2) the period of probation shall be two years and six m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... far as posting of Deputy Superintendent of Police and Additional Superintendent of Police is concerned, it has to be made by the State Government though there is no bar to posting any member of the service in any part of the State of Andhra Pradesh but for the convenient administrative control the State has been divided into various zones and each zone is headed by Deputy Inspector General of Police or Inspector General of Police, as the case may be. So far as the transfer and posting of Inspector of Police is concerned, it has to be made within the unit as specified in Rule 10, by the Commissioner of Police and Deputy Inspector General of Police concerned except in the case of Units IV and V. The transfer and postings in the case of Inspectors of Police in Units IV and V shall be made by the Deputy Inspector General of Police, Kurnool and Warangal, respectively. Rule 12 lays down uniforms grant etc. We are not concerned with other part of the Rules. 15. Now, in this backdrop of the administrative set up we will have to examine the amendment and the guidelines which have been issued by the Government of Andhra Pradesh by G.O.Ms. No. 267 dated 26.11.2001. So far as the posting of ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... lassification cannot be looked down as arbitrary or violative of Articles 14 & 16 of the Constitution of India. The classification is apparent which can be differentiated from the class of persons who are prepared to sacrifice their life as against the persons who want to do the routine policing duties. This cannot be said to be fortuitous classification. The classification is based on rational principle. Thus the object which is sought to be achieved in the present case is to meet the challenge of the naxals and to invite youth and courageous persons to accept this challenge. It is true that some may get an opportunity to serve and some may not but that is exigencies of service. Wooden equality is not possible. Similarly placed person cannot be treated dissimilarly. But that is not the case here. 17. We have already highlighted above the scheme/ guidelines issued under the Rules by the State Government. The guidelines are properly insulated against arbitrariness or discrimination. Principally four guidelines have been laid down, namely that a person who becomes eligible for accelerated promotion should be an approved probationer and he has performed outstanding work in the field ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... for accelerated promotion. Therefore, these guidelines have been made in order to check that there should not be any arbitrary promotion and there should not be any picking and choosing among the persons belonging to the same category. At one point of time, impression was sought to be created that there are no guidelines for giving such accelerated promotion but after going through the detailed G.O. Ms. No. 280 dated 17.9.2002 as discussed above, we are satisfied that there are sufficient guidelines which check the arbitrary picking and choosing of the persons for accelerated promotion. After going through these guidelines we are of opinion that there is least possibility of picking and choosing of the persons under accelerated promotion scheme. 18. However, learned Counsel for the respondents submitted that notwithstanding the fact that the amendment may not be ultra vires of Articles 14 & 16 of the Constitution, it is capable of being operated in an arbitrary fashion because the whole of the State of Andhra Pradesh is not naxal affected area and Zones V & VI are the only naxal affected areas and he tried to illustrate his point by an example that suppose an incumbent is working ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... or efficient functioning of the Police force. It was pointed out that looking to the local conditions and for efficient functioning of the police force recruitment at the Constable level is done district-wise basis and promotion as Head Constable is also done on district-wise basis by the Superintendent of Police who is expected to know their work. Same idea was apparent at the second tier by which Head Constables in a Range are treated as one unit for promotion to the rank of Sub-Inspector which is vested with the Inspector General of Police. By providing promotion within the range, the area is a little widened as compared to a district. It is only when one reaches the third tier and come to promotion of Sub- Inspectors of Police as Inspectors of the Police that local knowledge is not insisted upon so much as the work of Inspectors of Police and those above them is more of a supervisory nature It was pointed out that because the Constable, Head Constable and Sub-Inspector deal with the public directly and in such a situation local knowledge certainly plays an important part in the matter of efficiency of the Police force and in that background their Lordships considered that if th ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... e of the Inspectors of Police who filed the petitions before the Andhra Pradesh Administrative Tribunal has nowhere alleged that at any point of time one of them came forward to go to the naxal affected area and their request had been turned down. We examined the matter and we found that there is no such allegation made in the original application nor learned Counsel for the respondents could give us any satisfactory reply whether any of these respondents came forward for going to the naxal affected area and his request has met with refusal. But the learned Counsel for the respondents only submitted that it is not for the incumbent to make a request but it should come from the State. Be that as it may, learned Counsel for the State has a point that when the respondents have not come forward for going to the naxal affected areas, it does not lie in their mouth to challenge the scheme. However, we have examined the validity of the amendment in the light of the submissions made by parties and our answer is in negative. 22. Before parting with the matter, in order to further safeguard that in case of postings, though Rule 10 covers, but especially when the postings are done in special ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... kely to be affected while challenging the validity of the rules and in support thereof Mr.Verma invited our attention to the following decisions of this Court. i) [1971]3SCR832 Makhanlal Waza and Ors. v. State of Jammu & Kashmir and Ors. ii) (1974)ILLJ312SC The General Manager, South Central Railway, Secunderabad and Anr. v. A.V.R. Siddhantti and Ors. iii) (1983)IILLJ175SC A. Janardhana v. Union of India and Ors. 24. It is true that when the validity of the rules is challenged it is not necessary to implead all persons who are likely to be affected as party. It is not possible to identify who are likely to be affected and secondly, the question of validity of the rule is a matter which is decided on merit and ultimately, if the rule is held to be valid or invalid, the consequence automatically flows. Therefore, the original application filed before the Andhra Pradesh Administrative Tribunal or for that matter before the High Court does not suffer from the vice of non-joinder of necessary party. 25. Since we have already held the rule to be valid, therefore, there is no question of setting aside the promotions which have already been made. Hence, as a result of our above dis ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
|
