Ggm court orders top cop to act against ACP for not saluting judge properly

Gurugram: A Gurugram district court has ordered the police commissioner to take action against an assistant commissioner of police after he allegedly did not salute the judge correctly. According to the police, the ACP had appeared before the court to seek police custody of a suspect involved in a fraud case. After the order, the probe was handed over to the deputy commissioner of police, officials aware of the matter said.

According to the police, on February 8, ACP Naveen Sharma along with his team had gone to the court of judicial magistrate first class Vikrant, (who goes by his first name) to produce a suspect identified as Anil Sharma who was arrested for fraud of ₹25 lakh.

“As soon as the order was passed, investigating officer ACP Naveen Sharma saluted the Chair in an improper manner by just raising his arm and touching two fingers on his forehead. On being asked from where he had learnt this kind of salute, he tried to explain that he had learnt three kinds of salutes i.e. just raising the elbow, touching the forehead and then the proper salute. However, he later realised that the court was not a place to crack jokes and made an excuse that he was wearing a tight shirt, and he was not comfortable saluting. On being questioned, ACP Naveen Sharma informed that he had been inducted in Haryana Police in 2010. The conduct of ACP Naveen Sharma is against the protocol and rules as well,” read the order.

The court also added that as per rule, 14.2.(b) of Chapter No. XIV in Vol. II of Punjab Police Rules, 1934 (as applicable to Haryana State), every police officer entering a court of law in uniform, while such court is in session, shall salute the court, irrespective of the rank or status of the judicial officer presiding in such court for the time being. “The court has a reason to believe that ACP Naveen Sharma is in ignorance of the rules which govern his service. He needs to be trained properly to make him aware of the rules and protocol,” said the order.

A copy of this order be sent to Commissioner of Police, Gurugram requiring him to take necessary action under the Punjab Police Rules against the erring official and submit his report within one week, read the order.

Sharma refuted the allegations leveled against him and said that he knew how to salute and saluting is practiced by police personnel every day. “I am not a new police officer who had been to the court for the first time. The judge was agitated as we had requested the naib court to inform the judge as we were waiting for over one hour. He humiliated me for no reason and later called me to his room, but I had left by then as I had a meeting to attend,” he said.

He further said that the incident took place on February 8, and he had informed his seniors regarding the rude conduct of the judge. “People present in the court have recorded their statements and since there were no CCTV cameras in that particular court room, so I was unable to provide the recording to show the reality. I had applied for a certified copy of the order on Wednesday to file a revision petition. I have been part of the President’s Parade in February 2022 and led the police parade several times so the question of not knowing how to salute is not true,” he said.

Karan Goel deputy commissioner of police (West) said, “The report is being prepared and will be submitted at the earliest.”