In a major setback for the state government, the Gauhati High Court Kohima Bench has quashed the appointment of 935 police constables who were recruited between January 2018 and October 2019 without advertisement.
The court’s ruling, issued on Friday by 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.