NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court in its recent order has rejected the Union's petition seeking review of earlier May 23 verdict in which it had held that IPS (Indian Police Service) deputation posts in the Senior Administrative Grade (SAG), up to the rank of Inspector General (IG), be reduced progressively over a period of time, say, within an outer limit of two years.
Today's order of the apex court is a big setback for the Centre; the last legal option to explore in the matter is now a curative one, and with chances of getting the plea rejected being highly likely.
A two-judge Bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Surya Kant and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, recently, in its order on October 28, rejected the Union's review plea.
"The application for oral hearing is rejected. The present petition has been filed seeking review of the judgment dated 23.05.2025, passed in C. A. No. 13104 of 2024. We have carefully gone through the contents of the Review Petition and the papers appended therewith, and are satisfied that no case for review of the judgment dated 23.05.2025 is made out. The Review Petition is, accordingly, dismissed. As a result, the pending interlocutory application also stands disposed of," said the top court's order, accessed by TNIE.
The Centre -- in its petition filed in the top court on July 12 -- sought to review the ruling on IPS deputation in CAPFs (Central Armed Police Forces) and also reconsider the order directing phased reduction of IPS officers in senior CAPF posts within two years.
A review petition is one in which an aggrieved or a losing party moves the court seeking review of the earlier order or verdict. The judges who heard the matter earlier heard the review plea in a chamber, where no lawyer or petitioner or respondent is present to argue the case.
The Centre had moved the top court, after 50 days of the pronouncement of the verdict on May 23, on a batch of pleas seeking Non-Functional Financial Upgradation, cadre review and restructuring and amendment of recruitment rules to eliminate IPS deputation.
The Centre had moved the apex court and filed the review plea against the ruling of May 23 of a two-judge Bench of the top court, headed by Justice Abhay S. Oka (Now Retired) and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan.
After the ruling, Justice Oka has demitted the office on May 24. The top court, in its order, had directed the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT) to take an appropriate decision within three months of receipt of the action taken report from the Ministry of Home Affairs regarding cadre review and review of existing service rules/ recruitment rules.
Before the apex court, the Centre had said that the deputation of IPS officers was required and necessary to maintain the effective operational readiness of the forces and to ensure Centre-State coordination.
