Supreme Court sent notice to government and UPSC
Digital Desk, Chandigarh. The matter of seniority of DSP Joginder Sharma (former cricketer) and Geetika Jakhar (international wrestler) in Haryana Police has now reached the Supreme Court. The apex court has issued a notice to the Haryana government and ordered to make the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) also a party.
The court has made it clear that any induction into IPS from Haryana cadre will be subject to the final decision of the case. The crux of the matter is the decision of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, which had said that the two officers could not be given seniority from the date of appointment as their service confirmation was delayed by about 15 years due to non-completion of mandatory police training.
The High Court had accepted the same interpretation of the Haryana Police Service Rules, 2002, linking seniority to the date of confirmation. However, the petitioners argue that this delay in training was not due to any negligence on their part, but on the clear instructions of the state government. Both the officers were representing Haryana and India in national and international sports competitions during that period, which is considered as official duty as per state policy. In such a situation, it is impractical to expect them to complete training and represent the country and the state simultaneously.
Advocate Pratik Som, appearing for the petitioners, argued in the Supreme Court that the state government, considering his service over the years as continuous and regular, gave him benefits like Assured Career Progression (ACP), but refused on technical grounds on the question of seniority. This attitude is arbitrary and violates Articles 14 and 16 (equality and equal opportunity) of the Constitution.
Hearing these arguments, the Supreme Court not only issued a notice but also ensured that till the dispute is resolved, no administrative step is taken which would affect the rights of the petitioners. Now this matter is not limited to just the seniority of the two officers, but can become an important precedent for the interpretation of appointments made under the outstanding sportsperson quota and their service conditions.