NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has directed the Nagaland government to issue orders for appointment of Indian Police Service (IPS) officer Rupin Sharma as the new Nagaland director general of police (DGP).
The Supreme Court has set a week’s deadline before the Nagaland government to complete the process of appointment of Rupin Sharma as the next DGP.
Rupin Sharma, a 1992 batch IPS officer, is the lone member eligible to become the DGP of Nagaland, as recommended by the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) last month.
A bench headed by the chief justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud said: “We direct the state of Nagaland to pass consequential order to implement the Court’s order and appoint the officer duly empanelled by the UPSC.”
The Supreme Court gave this direction while hearing a plea filed by the Nagaland Law Students Federation against the appointment of TJ Longkumer as the state’s police chief.
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Rupin Sharma was appointed as Nagaland DGP earlier this month after T John Longkumer resigned from the post.
Rupin Sharma had earlier held the post of Nagaland DGP before Longkumer’s appointment.
A three-judge bench headed by CJI DY Chandrachud said any order by the court for lowering the age limit for the appointment of state DGP would not be in the interest of the police service.
“This court cannot be unmindful of the fact that a judicial order to relax age of 30 years to 25 years…will lead to a situation where officers who are junior by five years will be appointed as DGP, and it will not be in the interest of police service.”
