High Court Standoff: Contempt Notice Issued Over IFS Officer Empanelment Dispute

The Uttarakhand High Court has issued a contempt notice to Dr. Vivek Joshi, DoPT Secretary, for allegedly defying an order regarding IFS officer Sanjiv Chaturvedi's empanelment. The court had directed the Central government to provide Chaturvedi with empanelment documents, which the government had failed to do, according to Chaturvedi.

In a significant legal development, the Uttarakhand High Court has issued a contempt notice to Dr. Vivek Joshi, Secretary of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT), for failing to comply with its order concerning the empanelment of Indian Forest Service (IFS) officer Sanjiv Chaturvedi.

Justice Alok Kumar Verma took the step on October 23 following a petition from Chaturvedi, who claimed a deliberate disregard of the court's decision. Previously, the court had instructed the Central government to furnish Chaturvedi with documents regarding his empanelment as a Joint Secretary (JS).

Despite Chaturvedi's demonstrated merit and repeated legal backing from several courts, including favorable judgments from the Uttarakhand and Delhi High Courts and the Supreme Court, he alleges persistent persecution by authorities for advocating integrity and transparency in his official capacity.

(With inputs from agencies.)