Former IPS officer Rahul Sharma has filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the Gujarat High Court challenging the reinstatement of police officers Tarun Barot and N K Amin. Barot, accused in alleged fake encounter cases, was reappointed almost two years after his retirement while Amin was granted a one-year extension on a contractual basis post his superannuation. Both officers have previously been chargesheeted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). Sharma, who took voluntary retirement in 2014 and is now a practicing lawyer, argues that only officers with outstanding merit should be given such benefits.
The PIL alleges that the government’s decision lacks legal basis and cites the cases against the two officers. Barot was out on bail in the 2003 Sadiq Jamal Mehtar and 2004 Ishrat Jahan encounter cases and was among the police officers accused of shooting at Ishrat and others. Barot retired in 2014 while still behind bars at the Nadiad sub-jail, but the home department issued a notification on October 13, 2023, appointing him as DySP, headquarters, Western Railway, Vadodara on a one-year contract.
Amin, a co-accused in the Ishrat Jahan encounter case, was awarded a year’s extension on a contractual basis in his post as Superintendent of Police of Mahisagar district, a first for an IPS officer. He is currently out on bail and was recently discharged in the Sohrabuddin Sheikh encounter case by the special CBI court in Mumbai.
Sharma has previously challenged the elevation of DGP P P Pandey as Gujarat’s in-charge DGP as a lawyer for former Gujarat DGP Julio Ribeiro. The petition was dismissed by the HC. The PIL challenging the reappointment of Barot and Amin is scheduled for hearing on Wednesday.
The PIL raises questions about the government’s decision to reappoint officers who have been accused in serious cases. The court’s decision on this case will have implications for the accountability of law enforcement agencies and the administration of justice in Gujarat.