Mohammad Aftab Mir vs State Of J & K & Ors

Inspector in the Jammu and Kashmir Police. In February, 1995, he was posted as the Station House Officer of Chadoora Police Station, adjacent to the town of Charare Sharif in the district of Budgam, which is the convergence point for pilgrims and other visitors to the shrine of Hazrat Shaikh Nooruddin Noorani, situated in Charare Sharif in order to reach the shrine, people have to travel through Chadoora which is the gateway to the shrine. At the time of the Appellant's posting at Chadoora Police Station, his batch-mate, Shaikh Hamidulla, was already serving as the Station House Officer, Charare Sharif.

The Chadoora Police Station under the Appellant's charge was saddled with the duty of ensuring that more militants and unruly mobs did not enter Charare Sharif town during the said period. On 10th and 11th of May, 1995, in a fierce encounter between the Indian troops and the militants, the entire town of Charare Sharif, including the aforesaid shrine and about 1500 residential houses, were gutted. This triggered off violent protests all over Kashmir and, in particular, in the nearby areas from where enraged citizens in processions and even in unruly mobs starting marching towards Charare Sharif, not only threatening further deterioration in the law and order situation therein, but also threatening to destroy the secular fabric of the Valley by resorting to communal violence. The Appellant claims to have displayed exemplary courage and at the risk of his life prevented a temple at Badipora from being 4 desecrated and burnt by an unruly mob of about 3000 people and the action taken by the Appellant saved Badipora from being converted into a battle field.

According to the Appellant, he successfully resisted violent attempts by unruly mobs and processions of thousands of people to enter Charare Sharif through Chadoora which was under his jurisdiction. In effect, according to the appellant, it was the exemplary courage and patriotism as displayed by him as part of his official duties which prevented the situation from going out of hand in the aftermath of the destruction of the Charare Sharif shrine.

5. On 12th May, 1995, the day after the incident in Charare Sharif, the Inspector General of Police and the Senior Superintendent of Police visited the area to assess the situation. On 10th June, 1995, the Director General of Police gave only the S.H.O., Charare Sharif, Shaikh Hamidulla and Sub-

6. On 7th August, 1996, the Director General of Police issued a Commendation Certificate with cash reward of Rs.2,000/- in recognition of the Appellant's exemplary performance. Thereafter, since nothing further materialized, the Appellant 7 filed Writ Petition, being 5114 of 1996 in the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir, for a direction to the Authority concerned to consider and promote the Appellant to the rank of Inspector in recognition of his excellent performance. On 12th December, 1996, the High Court through an interim order directed the authorities to examine the Appellant's case and to inform the Court of the decision taken on the basis of such examination. Soon thereafter on 1st March, 1997, militants broke into the Appellant's house and killed his father.

Recognising the fact that the Appellant had been discriminated against, the Superintendent of Police recommended that retrospective promotion be given to the Appellant from the date of the order passed in respect of Shaikh Hamidulla and Sub-Inspector Sonaullah. However, nothing further materialized pursuant to the interim order passed by the High Court on 12.12.1996 and on 19th August, 2000, in 8 routine course, the Appellant was granted promotion.

7. Ultimately, the learned Single Judge dismissed the Appellant's Writ Petition on 28th May, 2007, and the Letters Patent Appeal No.149 of 2007 was also dismissed by the Division Bench of the High Court on 23rd July, 2007.

turn promotion could be considered only for consistently exceptional performance on the anti-

militancy front and that the recommendations of the Director General of Police, along with the dossier 15 of the concerned employee, along with other formalities and the extent of deviation from the seniority rule, would have to be placed before the Home Department Select Committee for consideration and recommendation which would then be placed before the Chief Minister with the prior approval of the Minister of State, Home Department.

15. It is clear that the Respondent State of Jammu and Kashmir is also alive to the fact that the claim of the Appellant has to be considered in the light of the earlier Circular dated 6th March, 1990, and not by the subsequent Circular dated 6th January, 2000.

17. Accordingly, we set aside the orders passed by the learned Single Judge and the Division Bench of the High Court and direct that the case of the Appellant be reconsidered by the concerned Respondents in accordance with the Circular No.14- GR of 1990 dated 6th March, 1990, for the purpose of granting retrospective effect to the promotion already granted to him on 19th August, 2000, and if such retrospective effect is given, to consider such other benefits that he may, thereafter, become entitled to in accordance with law. The said 19 exercise should be completed within three months from the date of communication of this order.

18. The appeals are allowed.

19. There will be no order as to costs.