‘Age never a hurdle’: At 85, former UP cop wins promotion after 25-year legal battle

A division bench of Justices Arindam Sinha and Satya Veer Singh, in its judgment delivered and uploaded on August 4 and 10, respectively, directed to release the petitioner’s promotional salary and benefits from March 16, 1980, till the date of his retirement. It said corresponding retiral benefits must also be given to him within four weeks.

The bench observed in its order, “The petitioner’s conduct in seeking to prosecute his case before us has been of diligence. We found out that he is a resident of Parasoeli Odamapur [in] Etawah. He has travelled on every occasion to be in court before us, as the order-sheet reveals. At present, he is more than 85 years old. Fact is, his writ petition having been dismissed for want of prosecution, his challenge to the order of the Tribunal was never heard on merit.”

The case

In 1999, Yadav retired from service as a Station Officer (SO). He had filed a representation before top officials, including the DGP, during his service period after his batchmates got a promotion and he was rejected.

In his April 2010 order, the DGP rejected Yadav’s claim, citing adverse remarks in his confidential reports and a previous censure. This order noted that Yadav had been punished five times and adverse remarks were mentioned seven times.

According to Yadav’s petition, he petitioned the State Public Services Tribunal in Lucknow. His claim was dismissed in November 2012. His review petition, too, was dismissed the next year.

He then challenged the Tribunal’s decision in the HC. But his writ petition was dismissed for non-prosecution in February 2015.

Yadav made an application for restoration, which was also dismissed for want of prosecution by a co-ordinate bench in December 2025.

The present application was filed for recall of the December order. The petitioner submitted before the court that the adverse remarks, as cited by the DGP in its 2010 order, were never communicated to him.

What the court said

After hearing the submissions, the High Court bench stated in its order, “The Tribunal appears to have lost sight that a fact can be proved, while the negative cannot. It was up to the department to demonstrate communication…”

“The Petitioner saying he [was] not communicated the adverse entries of many years could not be called upon to prove the negative. The Tribunal, obviously, erred in review of its earlier judgment based on the adverse entries, where the department had not resisted the case,” the court said.

Issuing directions to pay the petitioner the salary and other remunerations since 1980 and give him all the benefits of the rank of an inspector in civil police, the bench stated in its order, “The denial of promotion based on the adverse entries do not support the DGP’s statement that the petitioner was considered for promotion. We are convinced that the petitioner was treated unfairly.”

‘Age never a hurdle’

Yadav is a 1969-batch sub-inspector and holds a BA degree from Agra University.

When contacted, he told The Indian Express, “This has been a long legal battle against the injustice done to me… Earlier, I fought in the tribunal and court against my suspension, adverse entries in my service record, and denial of due appreciation for preventing bus robberies and heinous crimes…”

He said age had never been a hurdle in pursuing his case. 

“One thing that kept the fire in me alive was that I deserved to have been promoted to the post of inspector in 1980-81, having one of the best service records among my batchmates. But I faced punishment for being straightforward…,” he claimed.

Yadav has a house in Ghaziabad, where his family lives, but he divides his time between Ghaziabad and his village in Etawah.