Ambika bhardwaj
Published On: January 20, 2022 at 16:03 IST
The Supreme Court said on January 19, 2022, that Courts are concerned with the decision making process rather than the decision itself in Judicial Review Proceedings.
This observation was made by a Bench of Justices K M Joseph and P S Narsimaha while rejecting an Appeal filed by a Police Constable against Punjab and Haryana High Court Order.
The High court rejected his Petition, stating that such selection is not a question of Right.
It was stated by the Bench that in Judicial Review Proceedings, the Courts are concerned with the process of decision making rather than the decision itself.
The constable’s Complaint in his Petition was that he should’ve been promoted in 2004 and that the postponement in appointing him in 2008 was inappropriate and arbitrary.
The Appeal argued that the Inspector General of Police (IG) has no Authority to overturn the Superintendent of Police’s recommendation and that the IG does not serve as the Appellate Authority.
According to the Supreme Court, it can never be argued that mere suggestion of the Superintendent of Police at the initial stage is adequate to claim a Right to promotion.
The Supreme Court further stated that the Petitioner’s contention that the IG’s power is “not discretionary but mandatory” is also inaccurate because the rules are clearly empowering the IG to exert the power of scrutiny and approval.
It was stated by the Bench that it was for the valid reasons due to which the Single Judge as well as the Division Bench refrained from going into the individual comparative merit.
Also read: Review Jurisdiction of Supreme Court