Supreme Court of India has dismissed a Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by 935 Police constables and including 40 Unarmed Branch Sub Inspectors, Assistant Sub Inspectors, Sub Inspectors (Home Guard), and Havildar Instructors, challenging the judgments and orders passed by the Gauhati High Court, Kohima Bench, in September 2024.
The petitioners had approached the apex court seeking relief against the High Court’s judgment dated September 20, 2024 (Constables), and September 26, 2024 (ASIs/SIs/UBSIs/Hav), in various writ petitions.
However, the Supreme Court bench comprising Justice B.R. Gavai, Justice Augustine George Masih, and Justice K. Vinod Chandran, refused to interfere with the High Court’s decision, effectively upholding its rulings.
Senior advocate Dama Seshadri Naidu, along with a team of legal representatives, argued the case on behalf of the petitioners. Despite their efforts, the Court, in its order, stated: “We are not inclined to interfere with the impugned judgment and order passed by the High Court. The special leave petitions are, accordingly, dismissed.”
The Court also disposed of any pending applications related to the case.
This decision brings an end to the legal battle initiated by the police personnel, who had contested the High Court’s rulings.
It may be recalled that the Gauhati High Court Kohima Bench, in September 2024, the quashed the appointment of 935 police constables who were recruited between January 2018 and October 2019 without advertisement.
In an order, Justice Devashis Baruah, directed the state government to initiate a fresh recruitment process by advertising the posts in prominent local newspapers.
The verdict came in response to a writ petition filed by “unemployed youth” from Kohima and Chümoukedima districts in 2022. The petitioners challenged the appointments, arguing that they were made arbitrarily through “backdoor appointments” without proper advertisement.
Justice Baruah ordered that fresh recruitment should be carried out at the earliest, preferably within six months, and that the new process must follow legal procedures, including the issuance of advertisements in widely circulated newspapers.
The court, however, allowed the individuals whose appointments were quashed to participate in the new selection process. They will receive a relaxation in the upper age limit, but the court emphasized that there will be no relaxation in terms of basic qualifications or the departmental physical criteria.
Additionally, the court allowed the private respondents (the appointed constables) to continue in service for six months from the date of the judgment or until fresh appointments are made, whichever is earlier.
It is noteworthy that 11 writ petitions were filed by 26 educated unemployed youth, seeking the quashing of the appointments, alleging they were made without open advertisement.
In 2022, the court had already granted interim relief to the petitioners by directing the Police department “… that no further appointment shall be made to the post of Constable under the Nagaland Police establishment without making open advertisement.”
It may be recalled that Naga Tribal Union Chümoukedima Town, in February 2020 first raised objection against the recruitment of about a thousand constables through backdoor without advertisement.
NTUCT, in 2020, had also prevented the training of the fresh police recruits at the Police Training School (PTS) and Nagaland Armed Police Training Centre (NAPTC) Chümoukedima. NTUCT called for the cancellation of these appointment orders and issued an ultimatum, stating that it would not permit the constables in question to undergo screening and training at the NAPTC in Chümoukedima, which falls under NTUCT’s jurisdiction.