Haryana District Attorneys Seek Relaxation in Experience Requirement for Promotion as Assistant Director of Prosecution
Gustakhi Maaf Haryana – Pawan Kumar Bansal
A group of District Attorneys serving in the Prosecution Department of the State of Haryana has submitted a representation to the state government seeking relaxation in the mandatory experience requirement for promotion to the post of Assistant Director of Prosecution.
The request has been made under Rule 17 of the Haryana State Prosecution Department Legal Service Group-A Rules, 2013, which empowers the government to relax certain provisions of the rules in special circumstances.
According to the representation, the applicants are currently working as District Attorneys in the Haryana Prosecution Department and form part of the regular prosecuting cadre of the state. Their service conditions are governed by the 2013 rules that define the structure of the prosecution service, classification of posts, recruitment procedures, qualifications, pay scales and other service conditions.
The cadre structure under these rules includes posts such as Director of Prosecution, Additional Director of Prosecution, Special Additional Director of Prosecution, Deputy Director of Prosecution, Assistant Director of Prosecution, District Attorney and Deputy District Attorney.
As per Rule 7 read with Appendix-B of the rules, the post of Assistant Director of Prosecution is to be filled through promotion from among District Attorneys who have completed at least three years of service in that position.
The representation also refers to Section 20 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, which provides the statutory framework for the establishment and functioning of the Directorate of Prosecution. Under this provision, a person is eligible for appointment as Assistant Director of Prosecution if he or she has practiced as an advocate for not less than seven years.
The applicants state that they possess extensive experience in criminal law and prosecution and have been discharging their duties with dedication and professional competence. They have long experience in conducting criminal trials, supervising prosecutorial work and assisting courts in the administration of criminal justice.
However, while they fulfill most eligibility conditions, some officers fall marginally short of the requirement of three years’ service as District Attorney as prescribed under the rules.
The representation further points out that several posts of Assistant Director of Prosecution have recently been created to strengthen the functioning of the Directorate of Prosecution and to effectively implement the legal framework under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023. Despite this, a significant number of these posts are currently lying vacant, which may adversely affect the efficient functioning of the prosecution system.
Promoting experienced District Attorneys to these posts, the applicants argue, would strengthen the institutional capacity of the Directorate of Prosecution and improve supervision, coordination and efficiency in prosecutorial work across the state.
Rule 17 of the Haryana State Prosecution Department Legal Service Group-A Rules, 2013 allows the state government to relax any provision of the rules for a specific class or category of persons if it considers such relaxation necessary or expedient.
The applicants maintain that they constitute a distinct category of officers who are otherwise fully qualified but are unable to meet the three-year requirement due to recent restructuring and creation of posts within the department.
They have therefore urged the Government of Haryana to exercise its power under Rule 17 to relax the experience requirement and consider them for promotion to the post of Assistant Director of Prosecution in the interest of administrative efficiency and effective functioning of the prosecution department.
In the representation, it has also been pointed out that in the past, 24 District Attorneys were granted similar relaxation for direct promotion to the post of Deputy Director of Prosecution, setting a precedent for such administrative decisions.