K’taka HC dismisses PIL against M A Saleem’s appointment as police chief
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Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Thursday disposed of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) challenging the appointment of senior Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Dr. M. A. Saleem as the in-charge police chief of the state, a position he has held since May 21.
The PIL, filed by advocate Sudha Katwa, sought the speedy appointment of a regular police chief for Karnataka in line with the Supreme Court’s 1996 Prakash Singh directives. It also requested the expeditious empanelment of IPS officers as per SC guidelines and the “selection and appointment of a regular Director General of Police (DGP) and Inspector General of Police (IGP) at the earliest.”
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakru and Justice C M Joshi disposed of the petition after Advocate General K Shashikiran Shetty informed the court that the state would appoint a regular DGP within a week of receiving the empanelment list of IPS officers from the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC).
Dr M A Saleem, a 1993-batch IPS officer, replaced Alok Moha as DGP following his retirement. Currently serving as DGP of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID), Dr Saleem holds concurrent charge as the state DGP and IGP.
The AG told the court that an interim in-charge DGP and IGP was appointed through the May 21 order as the state awaited the UPSC’s empanelment of senior IPS officers eligible for the post of police chief. “The reason for the delay is the UPSC not sending the names,” the AG said, adding that a UPSC empanelment committee meeting was held on August 26, and the state had requested the final list be sent urgently.
“The present petition is disposed of. We do not consider it necessary to issue any further directions,” the bench said.
The PIL had sought to restrain Dr Saleem from exercising the duties of DGP and IGP during the pendency of the writ petition, alleging that the Karnataka government delayed communicating with the UPSC regarding the empanelment list.