AAP protests to absorption of UT Chandigarh Police officers with DANIPs...

The Punjab Unit of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) has objected to the Notification dated September 25, 2018, issued by the Union Home Ministry regarding the absorption of certain police officers of the Union Territory of Chandigarh with officers of other UT cadres. In a strongly worded letter to Mr. Rajnath Singh, Union Minister of Home Affairs, Kanwar Sandhu, Spokesperson for the Punjab Unit of AAP, has stated that the said notification was in gross violation of the letter and spirit of the Punjab Reorganization Act, 1966.

He has urged him to withdraw the notification which could affect not only the morale of the officer cadre of the UT Police but also add to the "perceived sense of discrimination towards the State of Punjab." A copy of the letter has been marked to Mr. V.P. Singh Badnore, Governor, Punjab & Administrator, UT. Through this notification, a new Service, DANIPS, has been constituted consisting of the National Capital of Delhi, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Lakshadweep, Daman and Diu, Dadra and Nagar Haveli and Chandigarh Police Service consisting of persons appointed to the Service under rules 6 and 7. 

As per the notification, the DSPs in the UT Chandigarh Police are sought to be absorbed with other officers of DANIPs, thereby changing their service conditions. The UT DSPs, who till now were governed by Punjab Police Rules and whose cadre controlling authority was the UT Administration would now be governed by the Union Home Ministry. Sandhu pointed out that this action was in violation of the rules, regulations and service conditions of the aforesaid DSPs when they were appointed to the service in UT Chandigarh.

The Notification puts UT DSPs in bracket with others of Delhi and other UTs, despite they being in different grades and groups. In fact, there appears to be an anomaly in the notification of the number of officers of UT; while the notification mentions only 17 DSPs of Chandigarh, in actual effect there are 23 in number. "The decision also blocks the promotional avenues of the Inspectors and other ranks currently serving in UT Chandigarh. All this could affect the morale of the officer cadre of the UT Police, " the Kharar MLA stated.

The AAP Spokespersons further pointed out that gradually the Union Government had been diluting the principle of 60:40 between the states of Punjab and Haryana for UT Chandigarh, as agreed by the Punjab Reorganization Act, 1966. This arrangement was to continue till a final decision was taken to transfer Chandigarh to Punjab. He expressed fears that the Union Government may slowly usher in UT cadre officers even for posts like Chandigarh Finance Secretary and Home Secretary, as they have already done for many other subordinate officers. UT Home Secretary is usually from Haryana while the Finance Secretary is a Punjab Cadre officer belonging to the IAS.  Mr. Sandhu said that in case the notification was not withdrawn, they would be constrained to move the appropriate court of law.