Haryana to amend its Police Act, ordinance on the way

Move comes after the Supreme Court order wherein UPSC would select a panel of officers from which the state govt would appoint the new DGP

CHANDIGARH: The BJP government in Haryana has decided to amend the Haryana Police Act to introduce a procedure for the selection of the director general of police (DGP). An ordinance in this regard will be promulgated soon. The extended tenure of the present Haryana police chief, BS Sandhu, ends on December 31.

The move is to get around the Supreme Court orders of July 3 wherein the apex court had directed the state government to send proposals with regard to the appointment of the next DGP to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) at least three months prior to the retirement of the incumbent DGP. The SC had also said that UPSC will prepare a panel of officers, communicate it to the states and the state governments will immediately appoint one of the persons from the panel as the DGP. The apex court’s directions were a reiteration of the 2006 Prakash Singh judgment on police reforms.

SEEK APEX COURT’S NOD

The state government will also file an interlocutory application before the apex court seeking modification of its July 3 orders. It is likely that the state government will seek exemption from the July 3 orders of the court and also permission to allow it to appoint the DGP as per the amended Haryana Police Act.

This would be necessary as the apex court in its order had said that any legislation or rule framed by any of the states or central government running counter to the directions shall remain in abeyance to the aforesaid extent.

THE PROPOSED AMENDMENT

As per the proposed amendment in the Haryana Police Act, the state government intends to amend Section 6 of the law to spell out a mechanism for selection of the DGP. “Instead of UPSC preparing a panel of three officers, the state government will devise a mechanism to select the panel of three IPS officers in the rank of DGP. A committee headed by the chief secretary may select the panel of officers and the state government will pick the DGP from amongst the three officers,” said an official. Also, the tenure of the DGP will be of one year, extendable by another year, the official said.

COUNTER ARGUMENT

The state government is readying to argue before the apex court that 2006 Supreme Court directions with regards to the appointment of the DGP were to remain operative till the time the state government did not enact a new model Police Act. “The Haryana government enacted a new police law in 2007. Its Section 6 provides for the selection and tenure of the DGP,” said the legal opinion tendered by the office of Haryana advocate general.

“While framing the Haryana Police Act, consultation with the UPSC was not found feasible by the state legislature. The state legislature in its wisdom deemed it appropriate to fix one-year minimum tenure for the DGP,” the legal opinion reads.