HC raps Punjab Police for action against low-rank officials

POLICE ASKED TO SUBMIT REPORT ON CONSTITUTION OF A SPECIAL COMMITTEE TO FRAME A POLICY FOR ACTION TO BE TAKEN

CHANDIGARH : The Punjab and Haryana high court has rapped the state police for initiating action against lower rank officers and leaving out the ‘beneficiaries’ in a case of concealment of information about criminal cases against cops before the high court.

“What is rather intriguing is that it is seemingly a case of shooting the messenger. The person who acted merely as postman to supply the information is being proceeded against, while there is stoic silence qua the beneficiaries of the said wrong information, at whose instance and to protect whom, wrong information was provided,” the bench of justice Arun Monga observed.

The bench was referring to a reply from additional chief secretary, home, Anurag Aggarwal, who had stated that misleading information about criminal cases against cops was submitted in court due to wrong/filtered information provided by certain erring officials, against whom disciplinary action is being initiated.

The details about 17 cops with criminal cases against them from Faridkot range could not be provided as it got committed erroneously and for the lapse, action has been initiated against an inspector, senior constable and a computer operator, he had told court.

However, the court observed that though the home department has candidly admitted to giving false information in December 2020 about criminal cases, it has put blame on low rank officers who compiled it.

The court has now asked Punjab Police to submit a report on the next date of hearing on its decision of constitution of a special committee to frame a policy with regard to action to be taken in all those cases, where the police officials have either been convicted and/or there are criminal proceedings pending. The bench also ordered that case now be listed for hearing before justice Anupinder Grewal, who had initially dealt with the matter.

The concealment about FIRs had come light in the hearing of a plea in December from Moga resident Surjit Singh, who had challenged his dismissal from service, due to pending FIRs. Then in January, the court had asked for complete information and to fix responsibility for the illegal act.

During the proceedings of the case, it has come to light that at least 107 convicted cops, including SPs, DSPs, inspectors, and 840 facing serious criminal charges are still serving in the Punjab Police.