NEW DELHI, Nov 11: Indiscriminate extensions to ``favoured officers'', mass transfers particularly in Uttar Pradesh, lack of transparency in promotions at the Centre and creation of several top posts without any job content has the IPS Officers' Association up in arms.

The Association has drafted a memorandum which is shortly to be submitted to Home Minister Indrajit Gupta outlining specific cases where transfers or promotions were ``used as a method of harassment'' or for doling out favours to officers.

An example of arbitrariness cited by the Association is the out-of-turn promotion given to the former DIG Meerut, Bua Singh, who was promoted as IG ``bypassing his seniors'' though he was facing a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry in the Muzzafarnagar firing case.

As a member of the IPS Association explained, ``The reason given for promoting him was that ACRs of other officers were not available but the real reason was that once the charge-sheet had been filed, he would have been superseded as in the case of S M Naseem, IG Meerut.''

According to the draft memorandum, unlike many other central services, there is no screening in promotions of police officers at the Centre. The empanelment for promotions involves a lot of discretion and promotion is not as a matter of right. Even a junior officer, it states, can be promoted or a ``punishment posting'' given to harass an officer. On transfers at the Centre, the Association has opposed lack of a coherent and transparent policy in Central Police Organisations (CPOs) where the chief of these organisations have, as the draft memorandum puts it, ``become all in all.''

Demanding a rationalisation of central deputation reserves, the office-bearers of the IPS association state that it is because of the lopsided 40 per cent ``loading policy'' for deputation, a number of posts have been created at the state level without any job content so that people can avoid coming to the Centre.

``For instance there are 29 additional director generals in UP alone and it has given rise to ridiculous situations where the State Crime Records Bureau is headed by an additional director general of Police whereas the Central Crime Records Bureau is headed by a junior, IG level officer,'' said a member of the Association.

To buttress its argument, the association has cited statistics: Out of 728 central posts, only 550 are occupied ``which leaves a surplus of 170 police officers in various states''.

The Association has also taken up the issue challenging the ``unfettered discretion of the CM''. The specific demands articulated by the Association are: a system of review of all the central police postings every five years; publishing of policy on transfer en empanelment; emphasis on merit in promotions, systemic improvements and discussions on existing practice of extensions.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.