VED BHUSHAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA AND ORS.

JUDGEMENT

(1.) BY way of present petition Mr. Ved Bhushan, petitioner seeks quashing of list dated 22.07.2015 wherein the name of the petitioner has not been included in the list of Police Officers recommended for the award of President's Police Medal (hereinafter referred to as 'PPM') for distinguished and meritorious service on the occasion of Independence Day, 2015.

(2.) WITH the consent of learned counsel for both the parties, the matter is taken up for final disposal.

(3.) LEARNED Counsel for the petitioner submits that the entire action of respondents in depriving the petitioner of the PPM is highly illegal, arbitrary and unjustified. He also submits that the list of officers recommended for the award of the PPM was not prepared as per the criteria prescribed in the letter dated 23.04.2015, in terms of which the States/UTs/CFs/CPOs were required to give priority to the seniority of the Police Officer. He further submits that respondent No. 2 has no jurisdiction to exclude the name of the petitioner from the list of officers recommended for Police Medal. He also submits that the respondent No. 2 has not recorded reasons for discriminating the petitioner while sending the list for award police medal to respondent No. 1. He further submits that it is strange that the petitioner whose entitlement for grant of police award was accepted twice has been deprived from police award for extraneous reasons. He also submits that if the petitioner is denied police medal on this occasion, he would not be able to claim the same in future on account of subsequent developments and in particular promotion to the next posts i.e. Assistant Commissioner of Police.