Bhubaneswar, Aug 11: The appointment of Odisha’s next Director General of Police (DGP) has come under scrutiny in the Supreme Court, with a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the panel of IPS officers forwarded by the state government to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).

A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant agreed to hear the petition urgently. The petitioner has alleged that the Odisha government was attempting to bypass the Supreme Court’s guidelines governing the appointment of state police chiefs.

Senior Advocate P. Chidambaram, appearing for the petitioner, told the Bench that the Odisha government had initially forwarded a panel to the UPSC but subsequently withdrew it. He claimed that a later panel comprised three DGP-rank officers and eight officers of Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) rank.

Chidambaram further submitted that the UPSC had indicated on August 7 that it would consider only officers holding DGP rank. He alleged that an ADGP was being promoted to the DGP rank to make the officer eligible for inclusion in a fresh panel, which, according to the petitioner, could be contrary to the apex court’s directions in the 2006 Prakash Singh case.

CJI Surya Kant observed that the UPSC was aware of the eligibility requirements and court guidelines. “We expect the UPSC to adhere to our judgment,” he said. The Court indicated that any ineligible panel should be dealt with according to its earlier rulings.

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