Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Monday, April 6, issued notices to both the central and state governments seeking an explanation over the allocation of the 7th rank at the national level to Shamirpet Police Station in Hyderabad in 2025.
The court was hearing a petition filed by Lokahita Society, which challenged the authorities’ inaction on a representation submitted in February.
Allegations of poor performance
During the hearing, senior counsel Ravichander and advocate S Gautham, appearing for the petitioner, argued that the police station’s performance has been unsatisfactory. They alleged lapses in investigations, negligence in registering complaints, and overall inefficiency in functioning.
Concerns over transparency in ranking process
The petitioner’s counsel contended that awarding the top rank in the state and 7th rank nationally to such a police station was arbitrary and unjustified. They further argued that the ranking process, conducted under the supervision of the Home department, lacked transparency and did not reflect the station’s actual performance.
Reference to the corruption case
It was also brought to the court’s attention that an officer from the same police station is facing a case registered by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), raising further concerns about the credibility of the ranking.
Court seeks detailed responses
After hearing the arguments, Justice EV Venugopal issued notices to the Union Home Ministry, the state chief secretary, the Director General of Police (DGP), the vigilance commissioner, the special chief secretary of the Home department, and ACB officials.
The respondents have been directed to file detailed counter-affidavits. The court adjourned the matter to the 20th of this month for further hearing.
According to the centre, the rankings evaluate stations on their overall performance, the quality of their interactions with complaints, timely grievance redressal, record maintenance, cleanliness, landscaping, staff conduct, and effective Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems (CCTNS) operations.
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