IPS officer Mahapatra moves tribunal

Director General of Police (DGP) Sushanth Mahapatra on Tuesday moved the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) challenging the appointment of Omprakash as the State DG&IGP.

A senior counsel said Mahapatra, a 1979-batch IPS officer, had stated in the application that the State government had ignored the compulsory health report of the officers eligible for the post of DG&IGP.

Mahapatra stated that though he was from the 1979 batch, Omprakash, 1980 batch officer, was appointed the DG&IGP. He further stated that the parameters for selection to the post, laid down by the government itself, had been grossly neglected/ violated on certain fronts.
The application quoted the Supreme Court’s directions in its order in the Prakash Singh vs the Union government case.

He said the selection committee lacked independence since Kempaiah, advisor to the home minister, was also part of it. The home minister was the chairperson and the law minister and the chief secretary were members of the committee. With the entry of Kempaiah as a member, the committee’s independence had been compromised, the application stated.