The Supreme Court on Wednesday questioned the manner in which contempt petitions alleging non-compliance with its directions on deputation of IPS officers to Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs) were removed from the cause list of a regular bench and listed before a special bench.
A bench of Justice Manoj Misra and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan took up the matter after the petitions were deleted from Tuesday’s cause list of the bench comprising Justice Ujjal Bhuyan and Justice AS Chandurkar.
Senior Advocate Shyam Divan, representing the petitioners, protested the unannounced transfer of the matter. He argued that removing a scheduled case disrupts travel plans for out-of-town litigants in a national court and questioned why a listed matter should be abruptly pulled.
The Registry’s report stated that counsel for the Centre in the contempt and connected writ petitions challenging the CAPF Act had mentioned the matters before the Chief Justice of India, seeking that they be heard by one bench since the Act formed part of the Centre’s defence in the contempt proceedings.
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati confirmed making the request, prompting Justice Misra to remark that both the bench and the petitioners should have been informed. Following the judge’s observation that parties were caught off guard, both Bhati and Solicitor General Tushar Mehta issued apologies.
Divan argued that several directions in the May 23, 2025 judgment, including a six-month deadline for cadre review, were independent of the CAPF Act and the contempt proceedings should therefore be heard separately.
Mehta opposed the request, submitting that the Act permitted deputation and its effect on the earlier judgment would have to be considered.
The bench said it would examine whether any directions were independent of the Act and, if so, whether they had been complied with. Senior Advocate Guru Krishna Kumar alleged that three further deputations had been made after September 22 and urged the Centre to “hold their hands” in the meantime.
The Court directed that the contempt petitions be listed along with the connected writ petitions on October 15 at 2 pm. It also directed that the Registry’s explanation regarding the listing issue be kept in a sealed cover.
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