The Punjab government is reported to be disinclined to send a panel of its eligible IPS officers to the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) for shortlisting them for the appointment of a regular DGP.
The UPSC initiated the process of appointing a regular DGP for Punjab by asking the state government, through its communication on Feb 18, to send the list of eligible officers to it for consideration by its empanelment committee within ten days in compliance with the Supreme Court’s February 5 order.
But sources in the Punjab government say Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann is unlikely to follow the UPSC order to send the panel by February 28.
Sources also revealed that though the list of eligible officers is ready, the state may not involve the UPSC as a policy decision. An official points out that the political decision does not favour any such panel to be sent to the UPSC.
According to the rules, the UPSC empanelment committee is supposed to shortlist three DGP-rank officers based on seniority, experience, and service records, following which the state govt will choose one of them as the regular DGP.
The apex court had slammed the practice of some states having acting DGPs and directed the UPSC to act against the states that delay the process of appointing a regular DGP.
The UPSC, in its letter to the Punjab Chief Secretary on Feb 18, referred to the Supreme Court’s Feb 5 directions, its 2006 judgment in the Prakash Singh case, and SC orders dated July 3, 2018, to request the Punjab govt to send the complete proposal.
However, the fact remains that the Bhagwant Mann government in the state has not sent any panel to the UPSC since its formation in March 2022 and instead appointed Gaurav Yadav (IPS:1992:PB) as acting DGP in July 2022, superseding several senior officers. Yadav has been holding the post for over three years and seven months now. He took over from VK Bhawra, who was allegedly asked to proceed on leave following a law and order problem after the killing of singer Sidhu Moosewala.
Interestingly, even if the panel is sent, acting DGP Gaurav Yadav would most likely be among the three shortlisted panelists, and the state government could appoint him as the full-time head of the state force.
The state govt in June 2023 had passed the Punjab Police (Amendment) Bill, 2023, for the purpose of appointing the DGP on its own through a seven-member empanelment committee. The committee, to be chaired by a retired Chief Justice or Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, with nominees from UPSC, the Punjab Public Service Commission, and others, is to recommend a panel of three officers for a three-year tenure for the regular DGP.
However, the Bill, referred by the Governor for presidential assent due to its implications for All-India Services, remains pending for approval.
It would be interesting to watch the outcome of the state govt’s action in response to the UPSC’s communication sent on Feb 18.
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