Supreme Court asks High Courts to register suo motu PILs over vacancies in Police Forces

The Supreme Court has directed that the matter pertaining to filling up of vacancies in Police forces be entertained and monitored by the respective High Courts. Towards this end, the Supreme Court has requested the High Courts to register suo motu PILs in this regard..While disposing of the petition before it, a Bench of Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi with Justices Deepak Gupta and Sanjiv Khanna directed the Supreme Court registry to transfer the material on record as well as affidavits filed by various States to the Registries of the High Courts..The Court noted that the main prayer in the writ petition pertained to filling up of vacancies in the Police posts and the same can be dealt with more efficiently while monitored by the High Courts of various States.Since the issues raised in the petition are State specific, the same can be dealt with appropriately by the respective High Courts, the Court said..“From the material on record and the Orders passed by this Court from time to time it appears that one of the central issues canvassed till date is the filling up of the large number of vacancies in the different posts in the police forces in the States. In this regard detailed affidavits have been filed by a large number of States. In view of the factual matrix at some point of time it was in the contemplation of the Court that the matter be sent to High Court(s) for effective monitoring instead of this Court continuing with the present writ petition. Issue and problems are State specific and can be appropriately dealt with by the respective High Courts.”.It, therefore, directed the Supreme Court Registry to transmit the records of the case to respective High Courts while requesting the Chief Justices of High Courts to entertain the matter on the judicial side by way of suo moto PILs..“Having considered the matter, we are of the view that the records pertaining to each of the States including affidavits etc. be sent by the Supreme Court Registry to the Registry of the concerned High Courts with a request to Hon’ble the Chief Justice of the High Court to entertain the matter on the Judicial Side as suo motu Public Interest Litigation and monitor the prayers made from time to time.”.Read the Order: