Punjab police recruitment: HC stays finalisation

Chandigarh, Mar 20 (UNI) Punjab and Haryana High Court today stayed the finalisation of the recruitment of police constables by the Punjab government.

This was done by the court's division bench comprising Justice Jagjit Singh Narang and Justice Kiran Anand Lall on a petition of Harjinder Kumar and 91 others seeking directions to restrain the Punjab government from going ahead with the selection of constables for the India Reserve Battalion (IRB).

It has been pointed out by the petitioners that despite orders of the high court given in a case on November 28, 2002 to reserve fifty per cent of these posts for the special police officers(SPOs) and the home guards, the Punjab government had chosen to make hundred percent direct recruitments.

The authorities, it was submitted, had also ignored the notice regarding stay on the recruitment of 675 constables for IRB issued on February 27, 2006 on another petition of similar nature as from Monday itself physical tests etc. for making these selections had begun, which was wrong on the part of the respondents.

The hearing would be resumed now on April 6, 2006 when the earlier petition on the subject is listed to be heard.

UNI XC PS LR KN2028