CHENNAI: Stressing on the need for police personnel and officers to be clad in uniform neatly, the Madras High Court has said those who fail to do so shall be subjected to disciplinary action.
The court directed the Director General of Police (DGP)/Head of Police Force to issue a circular to the department officers in this regard in four weeks.
A division bench of Justices S M Subramaniam and N Senthilkumar issued the direction recently while setting aside a single judge’s order to quash the disciplinary proceedings against a police constable.
It said police officers, medical practitioners or any other professional, while appearing in the court to give a deposition, has to be clad in the prescribed uniform and maintain integrity and discipline.
The order was passed on an appeal filed by the DGP against a single judge’s order (dated September 20, 2023) quashing the modified punishment of increment cut given to a police constable, V Arumugam, attached to Arakandanallur station, for appearing in an inebriated condition at a judicial magistrate court in Tirukovilur on November 25, 2014, for giving evidence in connection with a case.
The single judge had quashed the punishment stating that the policeman’s blood and urine were not tested to prove he was drunk at the time of appearing in the court but punishment was given based on the medical certificate.
The division bench reversed the order of the single judge stating that the medical certificate issued by the doctor, who examined the policeman, is adequate for proving the charge. It said departmental action is purely based on preponderance of probability and his act had totally degraded the image of the police. The policeman had also failed to maintain integrity and devotion to duty, the bench added.