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The Print
27-05-2025
- Politics
- The Print
‘Big jolt to IPS'—why SC order to end lateral entry in CAPFs is stoking unrest among cops
'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,' the order said. 'Consequently, there is a great deal of stagnation. Such stagnation can adversely impact the morale of the forces.' Stating that though there is merit in IPS officers heading CAPFs to maintain their character as a 'unique central armed force', the Supreme Court, in its order dated 23 May this year, said that it could also not be oblivious to the grievances of the CAPFs. New Delhi: After a long-lasting court battle between the officers of the Indian Police Service (IPS) and the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) over whether IPS officers should continue to be sent on deputation to CAPFs at senior positions, the Supreme Court decisively ruled in the negative last week. Therefore, the SC said that CAPFs, including the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Border Security Force (BSF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), Assam Rifles (AR), Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), and National Security Guard (NSG), will be treated as 'organised services' for all purposes. The court ordered progressively reducing the IPS officers deputed to the CAPFs. The IPS and CAPF officers' recruitments are through the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), under which the former gets recruited through the Civil Services Examination and the latter through the CAPF (assistant commandant) Examination. The judgment has come as a big jolt to IPS officers, who, so far, have been deputed to the CAPFs in large numbers. 'While IAS officers come to central ministries on deputation, we go to CAPFs on deputation,' a senior IPS officer told ThePrint on the condition of anonymity. 'Disallowing that is not only unfair to us but also hampers the Centre-state balance as IPS officers are the link between state governments and the Centre since CAPFs only report to the Centre,' the officer said. 'IPS deputation is necessary to maintain the all-India character of law and order,' the officer added. Also Read: Age just a number & retirement a formality. How retired IAS officers continue to run Modi govt Court battles, confusion, more court battles In February 2019, the Supreme Court granted CAPFs the status of Organised Group A Services (OGAS) and granted CAPF officers the Non-Functional Financial Upgradation (NFFU). Services such as the IAS, IPS, IRS, etc., are all OGAS, under which officers are granted pay and other benefits according to their privileged status, including NFFU. It means that an officer gets a salary raise and related perks if he reaches a certain level of seniority, even if the officer does not get a promotion due to lack of vacancies. So far, CAPFs have been headed by IPS officers and, at the same time, filled with IPS officers across senior positions. CAPF officers thought that the grant of OGAS would mean that lateral entry into their forces would stop, as it is not allowed in other services with the same status. In the absence of OGAS, 20 percent of posts in the rank of Director Inspector General (DIG), 50 percent of posts in the rank of Inspector General (IG), and all Director General posts in the CAPFs had remained reserved for IPS officers—an arrangement seen as deeply unfair and demoralising by the officers of the CAPFs. In July 2019, acting upon the Supreme Court judgment, the Centre approved the proposal to grant OGAS status to CAPFs. However, the officers' hope to head their organisations remained still unfulfilled. It was due to confusion over one line in the Supreme Court order, which, CAPF officers felt, was 'deliberately misinterpreted' to continue IPS deputation in their organisations. A line in the February 2019 order said the 'grant of status of Group 'A' Central Services to RPF (Railway Police Force) shall not affect (the deputation of) the IPS'. The RPF does not fall under the CAPFs, and the CAPF officers took it at face value—the line applied to RPF only, and their officers would head their forces. IPS officers, however, interpreted the order to apply to CAPFs in their entirety and felt that the omission of the word CAPF from that line was a 'human error'. The confusion led to another round of clarificatory petitions filed by officers of the CAPFs—first, in the Delhi High Court, which did not rule in their favour, and afterwards, in the Supreme Court. The latest SC order, however, has left little scope for confusion. 'Now that the central government has accepted that CAPFs are included in OGAS, the natural consequences should follow,' it said. 'In other words, CAPFs are OGAS for all purposes. When CAPFs have been declared OGAS, all benefits available to OGAS should naturally flow to the CAPFs. It cannot be that they are granted one benefit and denied the other.' 'The number of posts earmarked for deputation (for IPS) in the cadres of the CAPFs up to the level of Senior Administrative Grade (SAG) should be progressively reduced—over a period of time—say within an outer limit of two years,' the order added. Also Read: Amid Centre-state tussle, legal suspense over Jharkhand DGP's post retirement tenure 'IPS officers to man police stations?' However, the latest judgment has created a stir among IPS officers. 'Courts cannot decide how organisations of the Government of India are run, their structure, their promotions, etc.,' said a senior IPS officer on the condition of anonymity. 'This has to be decided by the MHA (Ministry of Home Affairs) and DoPT (Department of Personnel & Training). So, we do not consider this matter settled. It will go back to court if need be.' According to the officer, the government has increased the recruitment of IPS officers in the past few years. From 150 IPS officers recruited in 2019, the number of recruitments has jumped annually since 2020 by 200 officers per year. 'Where will all these officers go if their deputation stops? Should we all man police stations?' the officer said. The IPS officer further said that the central government ministries are all occupied by IAS officers, and the only place to go on deputation for IPS officers are the CAPFs. Even though, as reported by ThePrint, officers of several other non-IAS services like the railways, revenue, etc. are coming to central ministries on deputation in large numbers, there is almost no representation of IPS officers in central ministries. According to DoPT data, until October last year, of a total of 236 joint secretaries, there was only one IPS officer posted in the position in the Government of India. Moreover, IPS officers have a 40 percent Central Deputation Reserve (CDR), i.e. 40 percent of the total number of IPS officers in the country are supposed to be serving in the Centre at any given point in time. 'Where will all these officers go? IPS officers have the same constitutional status as the IAS. We cannot be dispensed with just like that,' the officer said. A second senior IPS officer, echoed the same sentiment. 'Other than the Assam Rifles and CRPF, all CAPFs have been created post independence and led and nurtured by successive generations of IPS officers. Removing them from most levels of leadership will be a huge decision with immense implications for internal security and for the future role of the IPS in the scheme of things,' he said. 'I am sure that the GoI will take all things into consideration before deciding on how the SC order is to be implemented.' IPS officers are likely to approach the MHA for redressal of their concerns, several officers told ThePrint. A shot in the arm for CAPFs On the other hand, the judgment has come as a real shot in the arm for officers of the CAPFs. 'We have won a just battle after many years of being manipulated over bureaucratic rules and nitpicking,' a senior CRPF officer told ThePrint on condition of anonymity. 'There is complete stagnation for us. We would not be able to rise to the rank of DIG even after years of service because much younger IPS officers, who had no idea about dealing with conflict or insurgency situations, would be parachuted in,' the officer added. 'They first tried to make sure that we do not get the status of Organised Group A Service, so we can continue to work at low pay and minimal benefits,' the officer said. 'Once granted that status, they found this one line which was, obviously, an error to continue the discrimination and to keep coming to CAPFs for plum postings.' (Edited by Madhurita Goswami) Also Read: Deportations, conversions to waqf, the ever-increasing powers of district magistrates in India
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.
