CAT Directs Punjab Cadre Allocation for IPS Officer Amanat Mann, Overturns UP Assignment

In a significant ruling, the Chandigarh bench of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) has directed the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), UPSC, and the Ministry of Personnel to reassign Punjab cadre to IPS officer Amanat Mann, overturning her previous allocation to the Uttar Pradesh cadre.

IPS

The tribunal’s order clearly stated:

“The applicant is entitled to be allotted the Punjab cadre. The notification dated May 7, 2014, which assigned her to UP cadre, stands set aside.”

Background

Amanat Mann, a promising IPS officer from Punjab, had originally listed Punjab, Haryana, and UT as her preferred cadre during the 2012 Indian Civil Services examination. Despite securing 194th rank nationally and being the highest-ranked candidate from Punjab in the general category, she was unexpectedly assigned to the UP cadre.

Following her training at the Police Academy, Hyderabad, which began on November 20, 2013, Mann challenged her cadre allocation, asserting that her merit justified a Punjab posting.

The Case Details

According to her plea:

• The central government had five IPS vacancies designated for Punjab cadre that year.

• The vacancy roster system was intended to ensure fair category representation, preventing consecutive allocation to OBC candidates.

• However, due to mismanagement, one of the reserved category vacancies was wrongly allocated, depriving Amanat Mann of her rightful Punjab cadre post.

Being the top general category candidate from Punjab, she was shocked to learn that all four Punjab-cadre vacancies were assigned to reserved category candidates. Consequently, she approached the tribunal to challenge the notification.

CAT’s Verdict

The CAT bench acknowledged Amanat Mann’s merit and ruled in her favor, directing that she be allocated the Punjab cadre. This decision not only recognizes individual merit but also emphasizes transparency in the cadre allocation process for the Indian Civil Services.