CHENNAI: Are women cops not suitable to do odd jobs at odd hours? Confronted with this question, the first bench of the Madras High Court has initiated suo-motu proceedings on the issue.
This followed an order of the Director General of Police, Civil Supplies CID, rejecting the promotion of 10 women SIs in general service as inspectors in the Civil Supplies Department on the ground that they were not suitable as the work involved travelling across the districts and making inspections at odd hours. And this communication was mainly based on the fact that no woman cop was appointed in this department since its inception in 1964!
By an order dated September 22 this year, women SIs were promoted by the DGP and 10 of them were allotted to the Civil Supplies CID. However, by an order dated October 5, the DGP, CSCID rejected them. By another subsequent order, they were reverted back to their original posts (SIs) in their respective departments.
Advocate K Sudhan, filed a PIL challenging the rejection order of the CS DGP on the ground that there could not be any discrimination on gender basis In these days, when women were competing and even excelling men, the rejection on the basis of gender was illegal, he contended. But the bench dismissed the PIL on the ground that matters relating to promotions could not be the subject of PILs.
It, however, initiated suo-motu proceedings on the issue as it felt the rejection on the ground that women inspectors had not been inducted into CSCID since its inception in 1964, deserved to be examined and issued notice to the Advocate-General.