Zeenews Bureau
Chandigarh: The government today recommended
withdrawal of police medal given to former Haryana DGP S P S
Rathore and announced that any police officer convicted for
"moral turpitude" or bringing "disrepute or disrespect" to the
service will be stripped of awards.
"The Central Police Awards Committee (CPAC) has taken
two primary decisions. The committee recommended to the
President for the withdrawal of police medal given to former
Haryana DGP S P S Rathore," Union Home Secretary Gopal K
Pillai, who heads the committee, told reporters here.
The recommendation will now be sent to President Pratibha Patil. The former police chief, who was given a show-cause notice last week by the Home Ministry, was awarded the medal Aug 15, 1985.
Rathore, convicted for the molestation of teenager
Ruchika Girhotra stands stripped off his 1985 police medal
with this decision.
Pillai is already on record stating that as far as other issues like Rathore's reduction of pension were concerned, a show-cause notice has been initiated.
The central police awards committee gives the President's Police Medal for Gallantry, the President's Police Medal for Distinguished Service and the Police Medal for Meritorious Service on recommendation from state governments.
"The CPAC has also taken a generic decision to authorise
the Ministry of Home Affairs to recommend the withdrawal of
police medal to all persons who are convicted for moral
turpitude and for an act that brings disrespect to police
forces, or any officer who is dismissed from the service for
his act which brought disrepute to the police," Pillai said.
With this decision, suspended IPS officer R K Sharma,
convicted in the journalist Shivani Bhatnagar murder case,
will also stand to lose his medal along with some other police
officers.
Earlier, Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda
recommended withdrawal of the police medal of Rathore who
has been convicted in the Ruchika molestation case.
In a letter to Union Home Minister P Chidambaram,
Hooda had said Rathore has brought "disrepute and bad name" to
the state and the police force.
The letter also mentioned "moral turpitude" on the
part of Rathore in the case.
Ruchika committed suicide in 1993 after her family was allegedly harassed for three years by Rathore.
Rathore was Dec 21, 2009, sentenced to six months in jail and Rs.1,000 fine for Ruchika's molestation 19 years ago, evoking widespread protests over what people called a light punishment.
He has now been booked by Panchkula police in two fresh cases, including the non-bailable charge of attempt to murder, after Ruchika's family filed fresh complaints.
-Agencies inputs
First Published: Tuesday, January 05, 2010, 00:19