HC sends SP Afroz transfer case to earlier bench

Advocate General Anup Kumar Rattan informed the division bench that the state government was not inclined to submit the panel at this stage. Instead, the government filed an application seeking modification of the September 9, 2024 order, which stated that Afroz shall not be transferred. The government had previously claimed that Afroz had herself sought a transfer from Baddi and was subsequently posted to the Police Headquarters (PHQ) in Shimla.

In its order, the division bench observed: “This application has been filed for transferring Superintendent of Police, Baddi, District Solan. It is brought to our notice that a Co-ordinate Bench comprising Justice Tarlok Singh Chauhan and Justice Sushil Kukreja passed a detailed order on October 23, 2024, wherein certain directions were issued and a compliance report filed. Vide order dated September 9, 2024, directions had been issued that the officer, i.e., Superintendent of Police Ilma Afroz, who was also present when the abovesaid interim order was passed, shall not be transferred from the Police District, Baddi. In such circumstances, we deem it appropriate that the matter be heard by the same bench. List on February 28 before the same bench along with connected matter.”

Advocate RL Chaudhary, representing petitioner Sucha Ram, argued that the case should be handled by the earlier division bench, which ordered Afroz’s continuation as SP Baddi.

Afroz, who was posted as SP Baddi, went on a 15-day earned leave starting November 7 amid reports of differences with Congress MLA from Doon, Ram Kumar Chaudhary. The charge of SP Baddi was subsequently handed over to HPPS officer Vinod Kumar Dhiman on November 14. After returning to duty on December 17, Afroz has not been assigned a new posting and remains stationed at the PHQ in Shimla.

Petitioner Sucha Ram alleged that Afroz was pressured into taking leave and argued that law and order in the Baddi-Barotiwala-Nalagarh Development (BBND) area had deteriorated since her transfer. He praised Afroz for her strict action against illegal mining, the drug menace, and organised crime during her tenure. The petition also highlighted the September 9, 2024 court order restricting her transfer.

During the Vidhan Sabha’s monsoon session, MLA Ram Kumar Chaudhary had filed a privilege motion against Afroz, accusing her of breaching his privacy. The matter was referred to DIG Abhishek Dullar for inquiry.

Chaudhary, who has denied involvement in Afroz’s transfer, was among six Chief Parliamentary Secretaries removed from their positions after the Shimla High Court invalidated the Himachal Pradesh Chief Parliamentary Secretaries Act, 2006, on November 13.

Ilma Afroz is an alumna of St. Stephen’s College, Delhi, and a Rhodes Scholar who studied at the University of Oxford, England.