Delhi prisons begin recruitment for law officers following High Court notice

The advertisement was published on April 26, 2025, and requires applications to be submitted within seven days of the publication date.

This development follows the Delhi High Court's notice issued on April 17, 2025, in response to a petition by Advocate Amit Sahni, a social activist, seeking the revival of a contempt case concerning the termination of 14 ad-hoc law officers. These officers had been appointed in response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed by Sahni.

The bench of Justice Vikas Mahajan issued notices to the Home Secretary of Delhi and the Director General of Prisons, scheduling the matter for hearing on May 9, 2025. The petition asserts that the abrupt discontinuation of law officers' services, without creating permanent positions, constitutes contempt of court.

In September 2019, while ruling on a petition filed by Advocate Sahni, the Division Bench of the Delhi High Court directed the respondents to complete the appointment process for law officers in Delhi prisons within 12 weeks of receiving a copy of the order.

However, the plea contends that these directives were not executed within the prescribed timeframe, prompting Sahni to file a contempt petition against the authorities for non-compliance.

During subsequent proceedings, the respondents informed the court that 16 law officers had been appointed on an ad-hoc basis, leading to the closure of the contempt petition on December 21, 2021.

The petitioner now argues that despite more than five years since the 2019 order and over three years since the contempt petition was dismissed, no efforts have been undertaken to establish regular law officer posts.

Furthermore, the plea highlights that even the temporary ad-hoc appointments of law graduates performing law officer duties were abruptly terminated through an order issued on April 2, 2025, by the Office of the Director General (Prisons), Government of NCT of Delhi.

According to Sahni, this action constitutes willful disobedience of the court's directives.

The petition also emphasises that under the Delhi Prisons Act, 2000, every prison is required to have a designated law officer. However, Delhi currently has only one law officer overseeing all 16 jails, stationed at the Tihar prison headquarters.

Additionally, it was noted that between August 2016 and February 2019, no law officer was appointed at the prison headquarters. Section 6 of the Delhi Prisons Act, 2000, mandates that every prison must have a superintendent, a deputy superintendent, a medical officer, a law officer, a welfare officer, and other essential personnel as deemed necessary by the government. (ANI)