'Can A Senior Work Under A Junior?' MP High Court Asks State To Review Ujjain Prosecutor Posting

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Justice Vinay Saraf of the Madhya Pradesh High Court's Indore Bench directed state authorities to reconsider the posting of a senior Deputy Director of Prosecution who had been placed under the supervision of a junior officer.

Suraj Bachheriya approached the High Court, challenging an October 9 transfer order that posted both him and Rajendra Kumar Khandegar to Ujjain. The petitioner pointed out that this arrangement effectively placed him under the supervision of his junior.

Records confirmed that the petitioner joined service on May 23, 1996, and was appointed Deputy Director of Prosecution (DPO) on January 9, 2014, whereas Khandegar joined service on October 24, 1997, and was promoted to DPO on August 27, 2014.

With only about two years left until his retirement, the petitioner had submitted a representation on August 6, seeking an alternative posting to a vacant position, but the authorities failed to act. While the state defended the postings as a routine administrative measure for Class I officers, Justice Pavan Kumar Dwivedi noted that under state guidelines, district DPOs are tasked with reviewing the work of public prosecutors.

Observing that "Prima facie it appears that the petitioner may have some genuine grievance," the court disposed of the petition.

The Director of the Prosecution Department has been directed to decide on the representation within four weeks. The court directed the authorities to consider seniority dates, promotion timelines and available vacancies "so as to avoid the situation where the petitioner has to work under the supervision of his junior," while also taking into account that "the petitioner is going to retire in short span of around 22 months."