Latest news with #A.S.Oka
The Hindu
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Supreme Court rules that CAPF officers to be ‘organised services' for all purposes
The Supreme Court on Friday (May 23, 2025) ruled that Group A officers of the Central Armed Police Force (CAPF) from batches dating back to 1986 are recognised as 'Organised Services' for 'all purposes'. A Bench of Justice A.S. Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan said in a judgment that the deputation posts of Indian Police Service (IPS) officers in the Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) or up to the rank of Inspector General (IG) in CAPFs should be 'progressively reduced over a period of time, say within an outer limit of two years'. It was Justice Oka's last day in office. Friday's (May 23, 2025) judgment paves the way for service rules or recruitment rules to be amended, allowing all connected benefits of Organised Group A Services (OGAS) to CAPFs and cadre review within six months. Presently, 20% of posts in the rank of Deputy Inspector General (DIG) and 50% of posts in the rank of Inspector General (IG) in CAPFs are reserved for IPS officers. The decision is likely to benefit around 13,000 CAPF officers. A CAPF official said that presently, an officer who joins as Assistant Commandant (AC) takes 25 years to be promoted as a Commandant, whereas he or she should attain the seniority in 13 years. A DIG rank official said that he reached the position after 31 years in service, against the 21-year required tenure. Also read: Over 50,000 CAPF personnel quit jobs in past five years: MHA informs parliamentary panel in 2023 The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) is the cadre controlling authority of CAPFs. The CAPFs comprise the Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP). The issue was earlier examined by the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court in 2015 and 2019, respectively, when it was decided that CAPFs come in the category of organised services such as the Indian Foreign Service and the India Revenue Service (IRS), among others. In 2021, Group A officers of the CAPFs approached the apex court again, seeking Non Functional Financial Upgradation (NFFU), cadre review and restructuring and amendment of recruitment rules to eliminate IPS deputation and allow internal promotions up to SAG. The Court said that the 'core of the grievances of the appellants as it appears, are non-recognition as OGAS, non-grant of NFFU and service stagnation'. In 2006, as a part of the Sixth Central Pay Commission's recommendations, the concept of NFFU was introduced to address stagnation among Group A service officers. So, in case of a lack of vacancies, if an officer of an organised service is promoted, the others of that batch will also get financial upgradation even if they are not promoted. 'The grievance is focused on the existing recruitment rules which provides for lateral entry into their respective services by way of deputation to various posts by officers belonging to the IPS, in the process resulting in complete stagnation in their service careers,' the Court said. The appellants contended that once the CAPFs are declared as OGAS for 'all purposes', consequential steps like cadre review and restructuring of the service rules/recruitment rules will follow eliminating lateral entry, like by way of deputation. The Centre told the Court that 'being an armed force of the Union, the purpose is to keep each of the CAPFs fit for fighting as well as to ensure coordinated action between the States and the Centre within the federal framework of our country' and therefore, 'deputation of IPS officers is necessary'. The Court said that it cannot be 'oblivious of the grievance' expressed by CAPF. 'Their dedicated service upholding the security, integrity and sovereignty of the nation while safeguarding our borders and maintaining internal security within the country cannot be ignored or overlooked. They discharge their duties under very demanding conditions. They have a grievance that because of lateral entry into the higher grades of the respective CAPFs, they are unable to get their timely promotion. ...Such stagnation can adversely impact the morale of the forces,' the Court said.
The Hindu
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Supreme Court upholds arrest of main accused in A.P. liquor scam case
The Supreme Court on Friday (May 23, 2025) upheld the arrest of a prime accused in the ₹3,200-crore Andhra Pradesh liquor scam case. A Bench headed by Justice A.S. Oka, who was on his last working day, dismissed the argument raised by the family of K. Rajasekhar Reddy, an IT adviser to former Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, that his arrest on April 21 was illegal. Also read: SIT probe into liquor scam | Kasireddy Rajashekar Reddy alone can spill the beans, says Vijaya Sai Reddy Mr. Rajasekhar's father had appealed to the Supreme Court after the State High Court rejected his habeas corpus petition. The appeal said the grounds of arrest communicated to Mr. Rajasekhar by the State's Criminal Investigation Department were 'not meaningful and just an eyewash'. 'The entire case revolves around the question whether the arrest of the appellant's son could be said to be per se illegal for want of supply of appropriate and meaningful grounds of arrest… Having looked into the grounds of arrest that were supplied to the son of the appellant at the time of his arrest, it is difficult for us to take the view that the grounds do not make any sense or are not meaningful or are just an eyewash,' Justice Oka concluded. The judgment narrated the prosecution version that Mr. Rajasekhar was arrested at the Hyderabad airport. He was arraigned as accused number one in the case diary maintained by the police. At the time of arrest, the grounds of arrest were supplied to him and later were also served on his father. Within 24 hours of the arrest, he was brought to Vijayawada and produced before the jurisdictional Magistrate. Mandatory condition The Supreme Court reiterated in its judgment that 'the requirement of informing the person arrested of the grounds of arrest is not a formality but a mandatory constitutional condition'. Opinion: Arrest, agencies, and criminal courts 'Once a person is arrested, his right to liberty under Article 21 is curtailed. When such an important fundamental right is curtailed, it is necessary that the person concerned must understand on what grounds he has been arrested. The mode of conveying the information of the grounds of arrest must be meaningful so as to serve the true object underlying Article 22 (right to protection against arbitrary arrest and detention),' the court quoted from its earlier judgments. The court said a detaining authority could only claim public interest against disclosure of grounds of arrest. The Bench said it would be open to Mr. Rajasekhar, who is currently in judicial custody, to apply for regular bail before the competent court. 'If any regular bail application is pending as on date, the same shall be taken up for hearing at the earliest and be decided in accordance with law,' Justice Oka directed.
The Hindu
14-05-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
Take steps to ensure proper footpaths, Supreme Court tells States
The Supreme Court on Wednesday (May 14, 2025) observed that the States and local authorities must safeguard the fundamental right of pedestrians to clear and unhindered footpaths. 'This court has recognised that the right of pedestrians to use footpaths is guaranteed under Article 21 (right to life and dignity) of the Constitution. Right to have footpaths that are unobstructed is an essential characteristic,' a Bench of Justices A.S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan said. The court directed the States and Union Territories to frame guidelines to ensure proper footpaths for pedestrians calling it their constitutional right. Key risk factor The Bench was hearing a case over the delay in the implementation of the cashless scheme for treating road accident victims. The court said the absence of footpaths contributed to road accidents, as it forced pedestrians to walk on roads, making them vulnerable to risks. 'It is necessary to have proper footpaths for citizens. They should be such that they are accessible to persons with disabilities, and removal of encroachments is mandatory,' the court said. In an earlier hearing in the case, the top court had asked whether the government was really working for the welfare of the common man by constructing huge highways without providing any facilities for emergency medical care for road accident victims. 'Can you be so casual? Are you not serious about this provision? People are dying in road accidents. You are constructing huge highways but people are dying there because there is no facility. There is no scheme for golden hour treatment. What is the use of constructing so many highways?' Justice Oka had asked the Centre. 'Golden hour' is the 60 minutes following a traumatic injury during which there is the highest likelihood of preventing death by providing prompt medical care. In a judgment in January, the top court had directed the Centre to immediately frame a scheme for the cashless medical treatment of road accident victims during the golden hour when their near and dear ones are not around and there may not be anyone to help them with money to pay for critical care.
The Hindu
09-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Fill up High Court judges' vacancies expeditiously, SC tells govt
The Supreme Court on Thursday (May 8, 2025) urged the Centre to clear recommendations made by the top court Collegium for High Court judges' appointments while noting that vacancies are affecting justice administration across the country. 'The Central government needs to act and ensure that the recommendations made by the Supreme Court Collegium for judge appointments are cleared expeditiously,' Justice A.S. Oka, who is also a Collegium member, said in an order. The Bench, also comprising Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, was hearing a suo motu case highlighting the need to ease the process of bail, especially for undertrials. The court was concerned with the fact that there were over seven lakh criminal appeals pending in the High Courts. A recent data published by the Supreme Court showed that 29 recommendations made by the Supreme Court Collegium to State High Courts since November 9, 2022 were pending with the government. Explained | The clogged state of the Indian judiciary Citing shortfall The Bench took the case of the Allahabad High Court, which had only 79 working judges when the sanctioned strength was 160. There were over two lakh criminal appeals pending in the High Court. In Bombay High Court, only 66 judges out of a total 94 were functioning. Delhi has only 41 judges while the Calcutta High Court has 44 when the sanctioned strengths were 60 and 72, respectively.
The Hindu
28-04-2025
- Politics
- The Hindu
Is there provision for emergency care on highways, SC asks Centre
The Supreme Court on Monday (April 28, 2025) asked whether the government was really working for the welfare of the common man by constructing huge highways without providing any facilities for emergency medical care for road accident victims. 'Can you be so casual? Are you not serious about this provision? People are dying in road accidents. You are constructing huge highways but people are dying there because there is no facility. There is no scheme for golden hour treatment. What is the use of constructing so many highways?' Justice A.S. Oka asked the Centre. The sharp comments from the Bench, which included Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, came while hearing a case over the delay in the implementation of the cashless scheme for treating road accident victims. In a judgment in January, the Supreme Court had directed the Centre to immediately frame a scheme for the cashless medical treatment of road accident victims during golden hour when their near and dear ones were not around and there may not be anyone to help them with money to pay for critical care. 'Golden hour' is the 60 minutes following a traumatic injury when there is the highest likelihood of preventing death by providing prompt medical care. The Court had noted that Section 162 of the Motor Vehicles (MV) Act had come into force on April 1, 2022. Yet, the government had not framed a scheme for its seamless implementation on the ground. Section 162 provides that the insurance companies must provide for treatment of road accident victims, including during golden hour, in accordance with a scheme which has to be made under the MV Act. 'Section 162 is crucial in the present scenario where motor accident cases are ever-increasing,' Justice Oka had underscored in the judgment. 'You are in contempt. You have not bothered to seek extension of time. What is this going on? You tell us when you will frame the scheme? You don't care for your own statutes. This is one of the welfare provisions. Three years (since) this provision has come into place. Are you really working for the welfare of the common man?' the Bench asked on Monday. The Bench asked for the notified scheme to be placed on record by May 9. It posted the case on May 13.
