The Supreme Court on Wednesday raised concerns about Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Dhami's decision to appoint Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Rahul (who goes by his first name only) as the Director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve.
This appointment comes after the same officer was previously removed from his position at Corbett Tiger Reserve following allegations of illegal tree cutting.
A Bench comprising Justices B.R. Gavai, Prashant Kumar Mishra, and K.V. Viswanathan expressed strong disapproval of the Chief Minister's actions, underscoring the significance of the public trust doctrine.
"We are not in a feudal era jahan jo bhi raja bole...(We are not in a feudal era where whatever the king says...) At least there should have been some application of mind with reasons in writing when he differed from his Minister and Chief Secretary. Just because he is Chief Minister can he do anything? Either that officer should be exonerated or the departmental proceedings dropped. There is something called public trust doctrine," the Court remarked.
Senior Advocate A.N.S. Nadkarni, representing the State government, defended the Chief Minister's decision, arguing that the Chief Minister had the discretion to make such appointments.
Initially, the Bench considered directing the Chief Minister to file an affidavit explaining his decision. However, after submissions from the counsel, the Bench decided not to include this in its order, with the State promising to provide a detailed explanation during the next hearing.
The Court's remarks were prompted by a report from the Central Empowered Committee (CEC), constituted by the Supreme Court to oversee forest-related matters.
According to the report, the officer's appointment did not inspire confidence among stakeholders involved in wildlife conservation. The report noted that irregularities at Corbett Tiger Reserve were still under consideration by the apex court, and disciplinary proceedings against the officer were pending.
The report also highlighted that the matter was under investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and that despite this, the State had not finalized the disciplinary proceedings and had instead appointed him as Director of Rajaji Tiger Reserve.
The CEC report was based on a complaint filed by Advocate Abhijay Negi.
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