NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday decided to summon chief secretaries of states to seek personal explanation of the steps taken by governments in implementing the court's seven-year-old judgment on police reforms, which included separation of law and order duties from investigation work.
A bench of Justices G S Singhvi and V Gopala Gowda ordered the top bureaucrats of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh to be present in court on July 31 to assist the counsel in "furnishing detailed information on implementation" of police reforms as ordered in the 2006 judgment in the Prakash Singh case.
Lack of cooperation from states in furnishing details of implementation of police reforms and non-filing of affidavits in time irked the bench, which said because of the insensitivity of the states, the case had to be adjourned several times.
"Lack of sensitivity on part of the states cannot be condoned under any circumstances," the bench said before deciding to summon the chief secretaries in batches to make a fresh attempt to free the police force from the stranglehold of political bosses and ensure people-friendly policing.
Repeated disobedience of court's directive saw the bench saying that "water has flown over the bridge of their patience". The judges said, "Our frustration is over the manner in which states and their counsel are behaving. Unless some officers are convicted under the Contempt of Court Act, things are not going to improve. Let the chief secretaries of the states appear in person and explain their position about implementation of judgment in Prakash Singh."
It summoned the chief secretaries of the four states in the first lot after advocate Prashant Bhushan accused these states as most non-compliant. Attorney general G E Vahanvati, who is assisting the bench in the matter, agreed with the procedure adopted by the court.
A bench of Justices G S Singhvi and V Gopala Gowda ordered the top bureaucrats of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh to be present in court on July 31 to assist the counsel in "furnishing detailed information on implementation" of police reforms as ordered in the 2006 judgment in the Prakash Singh case.
Lack of cooperation from states in furnishing details of implementation of police reforms and non-filing of affidavits in time irked the bench, which said because of the insensitivity of the states, the case had to be adjourned several times.
"Lack of sensitivity on part of the states cannot be condoned under any circumstances," the bench said before deciding to summon the chief secretaries in batches to make a fresh attempt to free the police force from the stranglehold of political bosses and ensure people-friendly policing.
Repeated disobedience of court's directive saw the bench saying that "water has flown over the bridge of their patience". The judges said, "Our frustration is over the manner in which states and their counsel are behaving. Unless some officers are convicted under the Contempt of Court Act, things are not going to improve. Let the chief secretaries of the states appear in person and explain their position about implementation of judgment in Prakash Singh."
It summoned the chief secretaries of the four states in the first lot after advocate Prashant Bhushan accused these states as most non-compliant. Attorney general G E Vahanvati, who is assisting the bench in the matter, agreed with the procedure adopted by the court.
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