IPS monopoly must make way for CAPF

THE Central Armed Police Forces (General Administration) Bill, 2026, seeking to ensure greater opportunity for promotion and predominance for Indian Police Service (IPS) officers in all seven of its organisations has been passed by Parliament. First, the Rajya Sabha passed the Bill on April 1, while the Lok Sabha cleared it on April 2. It is now law. Clearly, the government was keen that this be passed in the Budget session.What is significant, however, is that the government's move to bring about a legislation comes in the wake of a Supreme Court judgment in May 2025 (Sanjay Prakash Vs Union of India), which ordered the Centre to progressively reduce IPS deputation in top CAPF roles within two years to boost career progression of CAPF cadre officers.The Court clearly stated that all CAPF cadres are Organised Group A Services (OGAS) for all practical purposes.The court verdict was clearly a shot in arm for the seven CAPF organisations — the Assam Rifles (AR), Border Security Force (BSF), Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Indo Tibetan Border Police (ITBP), National Security Guard (NSG) and Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB).They had been agitating against the presumed supremacy of IPS officers for some time and had gone to court stating that they be allowed career progression in their own organisations and that this progression should not be stymied by the powerful IPS.The passage of the CAPF Bill in Parliament clearly cuts down the ambition of these CAPF organisations. The law has been brought about precisely to overrule the Supreme Court order and reinstate the prime position of the IPS.The law gives a detailed breakdown of this IPS predominance : As much as 50 per cent of total posts in the rank of Inspector General; a minimum of 67 per cent of posts in the rank of Additional Director General; all posts in the rank of Special Director General; and all posts in the rank of Director General shall be filled by Indian Police Service (IPS) officers on deputation.The sixth report of the National Police Commission had earlier sought to strike a middle ground between the agitating CAPF and the IPS. It accepted the supremacy of the IPS by admitting that a separate IPS cadre within CAPF organisations should be created, but insisted that it was important to keep space for CAPF cadres to rise within their services and even head them.Basically, the National Police Commission agreed that even though the IPS was an elite police service, it cannot have a monopoly on all organisations devoted to internal security.The new law completely closes the door for CAPF cadres to head the organisations, an issue they were working on. The IPS point of view : "head toh hum hi karenge," (we must only head all the CAPF organisations) — has been accepted by the Ministry of Home Affairs, and therefore by the government.In practice, all CAPF organisations — except for Assam Rifles (AR), which is led by a Lt Gen and under operational control of the Army -- are led by IPS officers, besides being deputed at other different senior levels.The CAPF performs a mix of functions. As border guarding forces, the AR, BSF, ITBP and SSB perform military — like functions, including securing the country's borders — illegal immigration, infiltration, trans-border crimes such as smuggling of narcotics, firearms, etc, fall within their jurisdiction.The NSG is a trained commando force and is used for special operations. The CRPF comes to the aid of state police organisations in case of a serious law and order problem. The CISF is a specialised organisation that takes care of the security needs of public sector industrial units.Along with the IAS, the IPS is one of two all-India services conceived as the "steel frame" of India, essential for national unity and stability and for providing a uniform administrative structure.And although police and policing were assigned to the states as domain, the IPS cadre was meant to perform a unifying function even as its cadres were assigned to states. They were intended to, and became, the axis of India's policing and public security architecture.Despite the CAPF deployed in different parts of the country with their hierarchical cadres, the IPS has been providing them leadership. For policy makers, this arrangement has functioned well so far.The CAPF, over the decades, has faced major challenges in which its own leadership cadre, along with the IPS has performed exemplary roles. They have been deployed to provide security during elections, blunted the sharp edges of terrorism (in Punjab), insurgency (in India's North-East) and of Left-Wing Extremism.However, the successes have led to a certain degree of frustration among the CAPF's leadership cadre as the credit for leading such operations has usually gone to the IPS.The passage of the CAPF Bill into law doesn't resolve the issue. While it maintains the primacy of the IPS, it doesn't address the dissatisfaction of the CAPF. For the time being, CAPF cadres may be quietened, but their concerns are bound to surface before long.They perform vital roles in the security of the country — even if they don't pass the elite UPSC exam that IPS officers do. Their voices should be heard.

IPS monopoly must make way for CAPF

A Supreme Court judgment last year had ordered the Centre to progressively reduce IPS deputation in top CAPF roles, the CAPF Act overrules it.

Ajay K Mehra

IPS monopoly must make way for CAPF

A Supreme Court judgment last year had ordered the Centre to progressively reduce IPS deputation in top CAPF roles, the CAPF Act overrules it.

Ajay K Mehra

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