In a major blow to career prospects of several Haryana Civil Service (HCS) officers, the Supreme Court has temporarily halted their promotion to the Indian Administrative Service (IAS) by staying a Punjab and Haryana High Court’s order and thereby reviving long-pending cases against them.
The High Court had, in its earlier order, quashed FIRs and chargesheets filed against these officers in connection with alleged irregularities in the 2001–02 recruitment process. It means the top court has revived those cases, which are bound to hamper their prospects of being elevated to the IAS cadre.
The SC’s decision once again highlights how long-pending legal disputes can effectively impact careers of administrative officers and structures of governance.
The High Court had quashed those cases—nearly two decades old—on the ground that they lacked sufficient investigation while terming the chargesheets invalid. The HC order had cleared the way for the HCS officers’ promotion to IAS.
But the state govt moved the Supreme Court against it and has secured a stay on it, stating that such serious allegations require detailed examination on merit.
Now, these officers fall under the “tainted” category, with the FIRs and legal proceedings having been effectively revived by the apex court. It comes in their way of promotion, as the vigilance clearance is mandatory for elevation to the IAS.
This means that even if their names figure on the promotion list, the Union Public Service Commission will not entertain their cases until the matter is resolved.
There are about a dozen of such HCS officers, who are going to be impacted by the apex court’s decision. The officers who are likely to miss the bus are Jagdeep Dhanda, Kuldeep Singh, Surender Singh, Veena Hooda, Jag Niwas, Kamlesh Bhadu, Vatsal Vashisht, and Sarita Malik.
Though this is not the final outcome, the legal uncertainty continues to cloud the future of these officers till it is decided by the Supreme Court.
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