The Supreme Court has decided to dismiss seven Fundamental Rights (FR) petitions filed by 145 Chief Inspectors of Police who challenged the promotions to the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP) based on applications called for in 2020.
The decision was delivered following a lengthy hearing, said Ada Deraa reporter.
Justice Preethi Padman Surasena announced the verdict with the concurrence of Supreme Court Justices Mahinda Samayawardena and Sampath Wijeratne.
According to the case details, the Inspector General of Police (IGP) had issued an announcement on January 31, 2020, calling for applications for promotions to the rank of Assistant Superintendent of Police.
The petitioners alleged that although the Public Service Commission (PSC) conducted interviews and granted the promotions, they were denied the same despite fulfilling all necessary qualifications.
The petitioners further contended that the Public Service Commission had admitted that the marks obtained by candidates during the interviews were incorrect and had subsequently amended those marks.
They argued that the Commission did not possess the legal authority to alter the marks once awarded, claiming that this process caused them severe prejudice. Additionally, the petitioners detailed several other grievances regarding the unfair treatment they allegedly faced.
During the proceedings, the Supreme Court summoned the mark sheets of the candidates who appeared for the interviews to examine the facts.
In delivering the judgment, the Justice noted that while the petitioners claimed the Public Service Commission had altered the marks, the Secretary to the Commission had provided a clear explanation to the court regarding the reasons for those changes. The court stated that it was satisfied with the explanation and recognized the process as lawful.
The judgment further noted that the arguments presented by the petitioners lacked legal merit and that they had failed to prove a violation of their fundamental rights before the court.
Accordingly, the Supreme Court dismissed the petitions without costs, stating that there were no reasonable grounds to grant the relief sought by the petitioners.
