Tribunal's order nixing Bengal top cops' promotion quashed

The Calcutta High Court Tuesday set aside a Central Administrative Tribunal order which had quashed the appointments of five IPS officers in the state including current state police chief G.M.P. Reddy to the rank of director general of police.

The order by a division bench of Justice Asim Kumar Banerjee and Justice Arijit Banerjee which observed that the selection process of the five DGPs had been proper, has come as a respite for the Mamata Banerjee government, after the tribunal order created an administrative crisis leaving the state police virtually headless.

The CAT, hearing a petition filed by Additional Director General of Police (Provisioning), Nazrul Islam, earlier this month set aside the promotion of five IPS officers observing that the selection committee set up to consider the promotions was not properly constituted.

Islam, in the petition, had challenged the constitution of the four member selection panel calling it flawed as one of its members - Home Secretary Basudeb Banerjee - was not eligible to be part of it.

The court observed that Banerjee who was present in the meeting of the selection committee was only a record keeper and remaining three committee members were included in the committee as per the existing rules.