SC cancels police promotions by previous govt.

[TamilNet, Monday, 11 February 2002, 20:22 GMT]
The Supreme Court held Monday that the Inspector General of Police and the former Defence Ministry Secretary had violated the basic human rights of petitioners and ordered the cancellation of 34 promotions provided to police officers as Superintendents of Police by the previous regime. The fundamental rights petitions filed by 46 Assistant Superintendents of Police Monday came up for inquiry before a three member bench of the Supreme Court comprised Justices Mark Fernando (chairman) C.V.Vigneswaran and Asoka de Silva.

The petitioners had cited the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense Mr.Chandrananda de Silva, Inspector General of Police Mr.Lucky Koddituwakku and the three members of the Board of Interview Messrs A.A Ranjit, S.A.Senaretna and Ramesh Jayasinghe, all were officials of the Ministry of Defence.

The petitioners stated in their applications that their basic fundamental rights had been violated by the respondents by providing promotions to junior officers in the police service.

Delivering the order cancelling the 34 promotions of police officers provided by the previous government, the Supreme Court directed the present government to hold fresh interviews and to make new appointments before May 31, this year.

The Supreme Court further ordered that the petitioners should be paid Rs 490,000/= as compensation. Of this amount the Inspector General of Police and Chandrananda de Silva, former Secretary to the Ministry of Defense should pay five thousand rupees each to petitioners. The State should pay three hundred thousand rupees as compensation. Three members of the Board of Interview which selected the 34 police officers for promotions should pay the petitioners sixty thousand rupees as compensation from their own money, the Supreme Court in its order said.

The SC further ordered the officers concerned to consider the possibility of framing bribery charges against the Inspector General of Police and the former Secretary to the Ministry of Defence in this regard.