Mumbai : The Bombay High Court on Wednesday threatened the state to issue a contempt notice for not complying by the previous several orders of the court to appoint protection officers in every Taluka under the Domestic Violence Act.
A division bench of Justice Abhay Oka and Justice A K Menon was hearing public interest litigation (PIL) which states that under the provisions of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 regular protection officers have to be appointed at taluka levels.
The PIL has been filed by one Rajendra Dattatraya Anbhule which states that protection officers play pivotal role in implementation of the provisions of the Act and that there are no regular posts of protection officers so certain government officers have to be given additional charge of the posts. It was brought to the notice of the court that there are 106 posts lying vacant at taluka levels.
The court observed that it is disappointed with the insensitive attitude of the state and said that even after so many years of the Act coming into force, a PIL had to be filed to get the state to do its duties. The court has asked the state to call the additional solicitor general to be present in the next hearing and has ordered the state to fill the vacant posts in one week. The next hearing is scheduled for January 16.
