The Supreme Court on Wednesday deferred to September 7 the hearing of a PIL alleging that the Odisha government was trying to include a junior officer among the possible candidates for DGP, in violation of the court’s 2006 Prakash Singh judgment.
A bench comprising CJI Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana deferred the matter.
During the hearing, senior lawyer P Chidambaram, appearing for the petitioner, said a rejoinder had been filed on Tuesday evening.
Amicus curiae Raju Ramachandran said he would file his report and needed more time to do so. He requested time until Monday, which the bench allowed. The court then adjourned the case to September 7. At the next hearing, the court may hear the parties’ views and arguments on Ramachandran's report.
At the previous hearing, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for Odisha, informed the Supreme Court that the state had filed its response to the petition.
The PIL alleges that Odisha was trying to shortlist a junior-rank officer for the post of DGP, contrary to the Supreme Court’s directions in the Prakash Singh case.
The petitioners have argued that the state’s move violates the directions issued by the Supreme Court in 2006. These directions require the UPSC to prepare a panel of three senior-most eligible officers for appointment as DGP.
The petitioners said the process was intended to ensure transparency and protect the police leadership from political interference.
In its 2006 judgment in the Prakash Singh case, the Supreme Court had said that the post of DGP should be kept free from political and other external pressures.
