VIJAYAWADA: A 13-year-long legal battle by a tribal youth for a police constable post has finally ended in victory, with the HC directing the government to appoint him as a Police Constable (Civil).
The division bench of Justice Battu Devanand and Justice Subhendu Samanta held that denying employment merely because the candidate failed to disclose a minor criminal case in the attestation form was unjustified.
The HC observed that youths from poor and backward sections should not be punished for life over mistakes committed at a young age. It remarked that while individuals facing criminal cases contest for high offices, denying a constable post to a tribal youth over a minor village dispute was unfair.
The petitioner, Dodla Penchalayya from Buchireddypalem in Nellore district, had applied for the constable post in 2008, cleared written and was selected. However, a criminal case arising out of a village political clash was registered against him in 2010, where he was named the 13th accused.
Though later acquitted, his appointment was cancelled after police verification revealed the case. His legal battle began in 2013, but both the tribunal and a single judge ruled against him, forcing him to approach the division bench.
The HC directed authorities to appoint Penchalayya within four weeks and extend him salary, seniority, and service benefits. The bench noted that suppression of information should not lead to disqualification and must be judged based on the gravity of the offence.
