Instead, it took suo motu note of a news article dated Dec 17 in TOI, and impleaded the state chief secretary and home secretary and directed them to file an explanation by Jan 7. A division bench of S M Subramaniam and Justice C Kumarappan, refusing to accept that the ‘orderly’ system was completely abolished in TN, directed the state advocate-general P S Raman to assist the court in the issue. Chennai: The Tamil Nadu police’s claim that there is not even a single policeman doing duty as an ‘orderly’ in senior officers’ homes has failed to cut ice with Madras high court , which on Friday rejected the claim.
On Friday, when the plea came up for hearing, the bench cited a TOI article — ‘DGP sets out to end orderly system, directs men to be back on duty’ — and observed that according to the article, about 4% of the state’s 1.3 lakh police personnel, nearly 5,000 constables, may be functioning as orderlies.
Both serving and retired senior police officers stated no orderlies were currently deployed at their residences, according to the report. He placed on record a report filed by the DGP. The court then directed the chief secretary and the home secretary to file an explanation regarding the existence of the orderly system in the police force. The judges noted that continuing the orderly system would amount to a criminal offence. The court expressed concern over instances where police personnel may claim to be ‘on duty’ while being engaged in personal or private work.
Earlier, the bench observed that, similar to the prison department where the orderly system was abolished, the practice must be completely eradicated in the law and order wing of the police. On Thursday, state public prosecutor Hasan Mohammed Jinnah informed the court that not even a single policeman had been deputed on orderly duty at residences of senior police officers in TN and that the court could order immediate action if any complaint to the contrary was received.