2 months ago
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The communicative truthful far:
The Central Armed Police Forces (General Administration) Bill, 2026, was introduced successful the Rajya Sabha connected Wednesday (March 25, 2026). The Bill states that successful the Central Armed Police Forces (CAPFs), 50% of the full posts successful the fertile of Inspector General, astatine slightest 67% of the posts successful the fertile of Additional Director General, and 100% posts successful the fertile of Special Director General and Director General shall beryllium filled by Indian Police Service (IPS) officers connected deputation. The Bill has been criticised by Opposition members and retired CAPF officials.
Why was the Bill introduced?
The Bill is successful effect to a Supreme Court judgement dated May 23, 2025. A Bench of Justices A.S Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan ruled past that the deputation posts of IPS officers successful the Senior Administrative Grade oregon up to the fertile of Inspector General successful CAPFs should beryllium “progressively reduced implicit a play of time, accidental wrong an outer bounds of 2 years.”
The Court besides ruled that Group A officers of CAPFs are “Organised Services” for “all purposes.” An Organised Group A Service (OGAS) is simply a structured, cadre-based civilian work with defined hierarchy, promotion pathways, and cadre control, arsenic chiseled from isolated oregon wide civilian posts. The IPS, the Indian Administrative Service, and the Indian Foreign Service are each OGAS.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) filed a reappraisal petition successful the Supreme Court, which the Court dismissed connected October 28, 2025. Despite the judgment, the MHA continued to name IPS officers successful CAPFs astatine the fertile of Inspector General and Deputy Inspector General. This prompted retired CAPF officials to record a contempt petition against Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan for not implementing the order. On March 9, the MHA informed the Court that a statutory involution is proposed. And connected March 10, the Union Cabinet gave its motion to the CAPF (General Administration) Bill, 2026.
What are the CAPFs?
The CAPFs comprise the Border Security Force (BSF), which is deployed on the Pakistan and Bangladesh borders; the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), which protects airports and captious installations; the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), which is deployed for interior security, law-and-order duties, and successful Left Wing Extremism-affected areas; the Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB), which guards the borderline on Nepal and Bhutan; and the Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), which is deployed on the borderline with China.
At present, 20% of the posts successful the fertile of Deputy Inspector General and 50% of the posts successful the fertile of Inspector General successful CAPFs are reserved for IPS officers done an enforcement order. There are astir 13,000 Group A officers successful the CAPFs, and astir 10 lakh unit successful total. The MHA is the cadre-controlling authorization of the CAPFs and the IPS. Recruitments are done by the Union Public Service Commission.
As connected March 9, determination were 213 sanctioned IPS posts successful the CAPFs, of which 35 are vacant. There are 4,594 full IPS officers successful the state and arsenic per norms, 40% elder work posts are to beryllium reserved for Central deputation and the remaining 60% for the States.
Why is determination absorption to the Bill?
Retired CAPF officials accidental the Bill is being brought to negate the Court’s ruling. They reason that an serviceman who joins astatine the fertile of an Assistant Commandant successful the CRPF does not get a promotion adjacent aft 16 years of service, whereas their counterparts successful the IPS get 3 oregon 4 promotions during the aforesaid period. They reason that the Bill reserves 100% of Special Director General posts for IPS officers replacing the contiguous operation nether which immoderate CAPF officers could scope these positions.
What is the government’s argument?
The Bill states that the CAPFs execute nationalist information functions successful adjacent coordination with State authorities, and that IPS officers are indispensable for their effectual functioning successful the involvement of maintaining Centre–State relations.
What did Opposition members say?
Congress MP Ajay Maken said that the Bill encroaches upon the rights of the judiciary. He said the CAPFs person played an important relation successful combating Maoists. Still, they were not being promoted, and cases of termination and voluntary status are expanding among the officers. CPI(M) MP John Brittas said Parliament cannot annul operative judicial orders without addressing their ineligible basis. Earlier, the Leader of Opposition successful the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to instrumentality the Court order. Discussion connected the Bill volition resume connected Monday.
