‘Only God can save this country’: HC bins plea of J&K cop sacked for skipping duty over terror threat

“E gageme t
of
SPOs
is
ot
of
a
pe ma e t
atu e
but
o ly
to
take
ca e
of
a
pa ticula
co ti ge cy,”
the
HC
oted.

S i aga :
O ly
God
ca
save
this
cou t y
if
a
police
office ,
of
whateve
a k,
gets
f ighte ed
by
te o ists’
th eats
a d
efuses
duties,
J&K
high
cou t
has
said
while
dismissi g
a
cop’s
petitio
fo
ei stateme t.“The
justificatio
p ovided
by
the
petitio e
fo
ot
atte di g
his
duties
is
u acceptable,
to
say
the
least,”
a
si gle
be ch
of
Justice
Sa jay
Dha
said
i
its
Mo day
o de .
The
judge
ejected
special
police
office
(SPO)
Hemo
Hamid
Wa i’s
a gume t
that
he
was
e titled
to
the
“same
powe s,
p ivileges
a d
p otectio s
available
to
o di a y
office s
of
police
u de
Police
Act”.
The
HC
poi ted
out
that
“SPOs
do
ot
hold
a y
civil
posts
egulated
by
statuto y
ules”.Reside ts
of
a
eighbou hood
a e
appoi ted
SPOs
“fo
specific
pu poses
whe
the
fo ce
o di a ily
employed
fo
p ese vi g
peace
is
ot
sufficie t”.
“Thus,
e gageme t
of
SPOs
is
ot
of
a
pe ma e t
atu e
but
o ly
to
take
ca e
of
a
pa ticula
co ti ge cy,”
the
HC
oted.Wa i
was
e gaged
as
a
SPO
i
2012.
I
2015,
he
was
posted
at
Reshipo a
i
south
Kashmi ’s
Shopia .
While
at
home
o
medical
leave
at
o e
poi t
the ,
he
eceived
life
th eats
f om
te o ists
a d
failed
to
epo t
back
to
duties.

Whe
he
etu ed
afte
some
time
to
his
posti g,
he
was
ot
allowed
to
joi
duty,
fo ci g
him
to
take
the
matte
to
se io
office s.Whe
o
actio
was
take ,
Wa i
moved
the
HC.
I
Aug
last
yea ,
the
cou t
di ected
the
J&K
police
DGP
to
take
a
decisio
o
Wa i’s
plea.
The
DGP
tu ed
it
dow ,
fo ci g
Wa i
to
move
the
HC
agai .I
his
HC
petitio ,
Wa i
a gued
that
J&K
Police
had
dise gaged
him
without
i qui y,
fo mal
cha ges
o
hea i g.
The
actio ,
he
said,
violated
the
Co stitutio ’s
A ticles
16
(equality
of
oppo tu ity
i
public
employme t),
21
( ight
to
life
a d
livelihood)
a d
311
(p otectio
agai st
a bit a y
dismissal),
besides
p ovisio s
of
J&K
Police
Rules.

The
HC
ejected
the
co te tio s,
sayi g
Wa i,
as
a
SPO,
was
ot
e titled
to
a y
hea i g
o
i qui y
i
view
of
the
tempo a y
atu e
of
his
e gageme t.
Eve
if
it
is
assumed
that
Wa i
had
the
ight
to
such
a
hea i g,
his
failu e
to
pe fo m
duties
i
the
face
of
te o
th eats
is
e ough
easo
to
emove
him,
the
HC
held.“G a ti g
a
oppo tu ity
to
the
petitio e
to
p ese t
his
case
p io
to
dise gageme t
would
have
bee
a
empty
fo mality.
The
DGP
has
ightly
ejected
the
petitio e ’s
ep ese tatio .
The
o de
does
ot
call
fo
a y
i te fe e ce,”
Justice
Dha
obse ved.